Skyrmions Under Control—FIB Irradiation as a Versatile Tool for Skyrmion Circuits

Magnetic data storage and processing offer certain advances over conventional technologies, amongst which nonvolatility and low power operation are the most outstanding ones. Skyrmions are a promising candidate as a magnetic data carrier. However, the sputtering of skyrmion films and the control of the skyrmion nucleation, motion, and annihilation remains challenging. This work demonstrates that using optimized focused ion beam irradiation and annealing protocols enables the skyrmion phase in W/CoFeB/MgO thin films to be accessed easily. By analyzing ion‐beam‐engineered skyrmion hosting wires, excited by sub‐100 ns current pulses, possibilities to control skyrmion nucleation, guide their motion, and control their annihilation unfold. Overall, the key elements needed to develop extensive skyrmion networks are presented. A novel way to guide the motion and control the nucleation of skyrmions, magnetic bubbles envisioned for next‐generation spintronic data storage and computation, by means of local ion irradiation, is presented. It is shown that ion irradiation with an optimized dose can create repulsive barriers and even nucleation centers for skyrmions.