Hedgehog spin-vortex crystal stabilized in a hole-doped iron-based superconductor

Magnetism is widely considered to be a key ingredient of unconventional superconductivity. In contrast to cuprate high-temperature superconductors, antiferromagnetism in most Fe-based superconductors (FeSCs) is characterized by a pair of magnetic propagation vectors, ( π ,0) and (0, π ). Consequently, three different types of magnetic order are possible. Of these, only stripe-type spin-density wave (SSDW) and spin-charge-density wave (SCDW) orders have been observed. A realization of the proposed spin-vortex crystal (SVC) order is noticeably absent. We report a magnetic phase consistent with the hedgehog variation of SVC order in Ni-doped and Co-doped CaKFe 4 As 4 based on thermodynamic, transport, structural and local magnetic probes combined with symmetry analysis. The exotic SVC phase is stabilized by the reduced symmetry of the CaKFe 4 As 4 structure. Our results suggest that the possible magnetic ground states in FeSCs have very similar energies, providing an enlarged configuration space for magnetic fluctuations to promote high-temperature superconductivity. Iron-based superconductors: making a hedgehog spin-vortex crystal The magnetic texture of a new superconductor adopts a in-out spin, spin-vortex crystal motif, fulfilling theoretical predictions. Many iron-based superconductors have magnetic phases arising from combining two basic magnetic structures, but only two of three possible combinations had previously been observed. A team led by Paul Canfield of Iowa State University and Ames Laboratory have synthesised a material with the third type of magnetic structure called a hedgehog spin-vortex crystal. The authors began with a compound with spatial symmetry that could help stabilise the structure, but without magnetic order. By tuning the chemical composition they induced magnetism and successfully obtained the desired phase. The sensitivity of the magnetic state to the symmetry and composition indicates that different phases are energetically close, suggesting magnetic fluctuations may play a significant role in the physics of iron-based superconductors.