Terahertz-field activation of polar skyrons

Huaiyu Hugo Wang, Vladimir A. Stoica, Cheng Dai, Marek Paściak, Sujit Das, Tiannan Yang, Mauro A. P. Gonçalves, Jiri Kulda, Margaret R. McCarter, Anudeep Mangu, Yue Cao, Hari Padma, Utkarsh Saha, Diling Zhu, Takahiro Sato, Sanghoon Song, Matthias C. Hoffmann, Patrick Kramer, Silke Nelson, Yanwen Sun, Quynh Nguyen, Zhan Zhang, Ramamoorthy Ramesh, Lane W. Martin, Aaron M. Lindenberg, Long-Qing Chen, John W. Freeland (), Jirka Hlinka (), Venkatraman Gopalan () and Haidan Wen ()
Additional contact information
Huaiyu Hugo Wang: The Pennsylvania State University
Vladimir A. Stoica: The Pennsylvania State University
Cheng Dai: The Pennsylvania State University
Marek Paściak: Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences
Sujit Das: Indian Institute of Science
Tiannan Yang: The Pennsylvania State University
Mauro A. P. Gonçalves: Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences
Jiri Kulda: Institut Laue Langevin
Margaret R. McCarter: Berkeley
Anudeep Mangu: Stanford University
Yue Cao: Argonne National Laboratory
Hari Padma: The Pennsylvania State University
Utkarsh Saha: The Pennsylvania State University
Diling Zhu: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Takahiro Sato: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Sanghoon Song: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Matthias C. Hoffmann: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Patrick Kramer: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Silke Nelson: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Yanwen Sun: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Quynh Nguyen: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Zhan Zhang: Argonne National Laboratory
Ramamoorthy Ramesh: Berkeley
Lane W. Martin: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Aaron M. Lindenberg: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Long-Qing Chen: The Pennsylvania State University
John W. Freeland: Argonne National Laboratory
Jirka Hlinka: Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences
Venkatraman Gopalan: The Pennsylvania State University
Haidan Wen: Argonne National Laboratory

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract Unraveling collective modes arising from coupled degrees of freedom is crucial for understanding complex interactions in solids and developing new functionalities. Unique collective behaviors emerge when two degrees of freedom, ordered on distinct length scales, interact. Polar skyrmions, three-dimensional electric polarization textures in ferroelectric superlattices, disrupt the lattice continuity at the nanometer scale with nontrivial topology, leading to previously unexplored collective modes. Here, using terahertz-field excitation and femtosecond x-ray diffraction, we discover subterahertz collective modes, dubbed “skyrons”, which appear as swirling patterns of atomic displacements functioning as atomic-scale gearsets. The key to activating skyrons is the use of the THz field that couples primarily to skyrmion domain walls. Momentum-resolved time-domain measurements of diffuse scattering reveal an avoided crossing in the dispersion relation of skyrons. Atomistic simulations and dynamical phase-field modeling provide microscopic insights into the three-dimensional crystallographic and polarization dynamics. The amplitude and dispersion of skyrons are demonstrated to be controlled by sample temperature and electric-field bias. The discovery of skyrons and their coupling with terahertz fields opens avenues for ultrafast control of topological polar structures.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-64033-6

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