Spin-Glass-Like Behavior and Topological Hall Effect in SrRuO3/SrIrO3 Superlattices for Oxide Spintronics Applications

The heterostructure interface provides a powerful platform for exploring rich emergent phenomena, such as interfacial superconductivity and nontrivial topological surface states. Here, SrRuO3/SrIrO3 superlattices were epitaxially synthesized. The magnetic and magneto-transport properties of these superlattices were characterized. A broad cusp-type splitting in the zero-field-cooling/field-cooling temperature-dependent magnetization and magnetization relaxation, which follows the modified stretched function model, accompanied by double hysteresis magnetization loops were demonstrated. These physical effects were modulated by the SrIrO3 layer thickness, which confirms the coexistence of interfacial spin glass and ferromagnetic ordering in the superlattices. In addition, the topological Hall effect was observed at low temperatures, and it is weakened with the increase of the SrIrO3 layer thickness. These results suggest that a noncoplanar spin texture is generated at the SrRuO3/SrIrO3 interfaces because of the interfacial Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction. This work demonstrates that SrIrO3 can effectively induce interfacial Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interactions in superlattices, which would serve as a mechanism to develop spintronic devices with perovskite oxides.