Transformation from Magnetic Soliton to Skyrmion in a Monoaxial Chiral Magnet.

Topological spin textures are of great interest for both fundamental physics and applications in spintronics. The Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (DM) interaction underpins the formation of single-twisted magnetic solitons or multi-twisted magnetic skyrmions in magnetic materials with different crystallographic symmetries. However, topological transitions between these two kinds of topological objects have not been verified experimentally. Here, we report the direct observation of transformations from a chiral soliton lattice (CSL) to magnetic skyrmions in a nanostripe of the monoaxial chiral magnet CrNb 3 S 6 using Lorentz transmission electron microscopy. In the presence of an external magnetic field, helical spin structures first transform into CSLs and then evolve into isolated elongated magnetic skyrmions. The detailed spin textures of the elongated magnetic skyrmions are resolved using off-axis electron holography and are shown to comprise two merons, which enclose their ends and have unit total topological charge. Magnetic dipolar interactions are shown to play a key role in the magnetic soliton-skyrmion transformation, which depends sensitively on nanostripe width. Our findings, which are consistent with micromagnetic simulations, enrich the family of topological magnetic states and their transitions and promise to further stimulate the exploration of their emergent electromagnetic properties. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.