Antiskyrmionic ferroelectric medium

Abstract

Typical magnetic skyrmion is a string of inverted magnetization within a ferromagnet, protected by a sleeve of a vortex-like spin texture, such that its cross-section carries a positive integer topological charge. Some magnets form antiskyrmions, the antiparticle strings which carry a negative topological charge instead. Here we demonstrate that topologically equivalent but purely electric antiskyrmion can exist in a ferroelectric material as well. In particular, our computer experiments reveal that the archetype ferroelectric, barium titanate, can host antiskyrmions. The polarization pattern around their cores reminds ring windings of decorative knots rather than the typical magnetic antiskyrmion texture. We show that the antiskyrmion of barium titanate has just 2-3 nm in diameter, a hexagonal cross-section, and an exotic topological charge of minus two. We deduce that formation of antiskyrmions is favored by a fortunate combination of the moderate anisotropy of the anharmonic electric susceptibility and the characteristic anisotropy of the polarization correlations in barium titanate crystals.