Statistical Signatures of Topology and Chirality in the Annihilation Field Distributions of Magnetic Thin Films
Abstract Magnetic skyrmions are winding spin textures whose proposed stability underpins their promise for next‐generation spintronic devices. While this topological stabilization is widely theorized to suppress collapse and disorder‐driven annihilation, direct experimental validation has remained challenging, often requiring complex imaging techniques or indirect electrical probes. Here, a simple and general method is introduced to probe skyrmion topology statistically by analyzing annihilation field distributions in large skyrmion bubble arrays using wide‐field Kerr microscopy. By systematically applying in‐plane (IP) magnetic fields, the skyrmion topology is continuously tuned, enabling transitions from topologically nontrivial to trivial states. It is found that this topological transition drives a clear shift in annihilation behavior: from broad, thermally activated distributions (stochastic collapse) to narrow, sharply defined distributions (deterministic collapse), confirmed by micromagnetic simulations. This direct correlation between topological state and statistical stability provides a new route for chirality detection and skyrmion state control. This method enables accessible identification of skyrmion topology and opens new possibilities for device concepts: deterministic collapse for synchronized skyrmion deletion in memory, and topology‐tunable stochasticity for probabilistic computing and random bit generation.
Institutions
- University of Augsburg (DE)
- Brown University (US)
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Advanced Functional Materials
- Published
- 2025-12-17
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202526052
- Primary Topic
- Magnetic properties of thin films
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00