Optical control of skyrmion trajectories via skyrmion number currents
Phys. Rev. B 113, 054418 – Published 11 February, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/rmcr-l765
Abstract
We propose a mechanism to control magnetic skyrmion motion by generating a skyrmion number current. This current is produced and controlled via an explicitly time-dependent Hamiltonian containing a Zeeman term arising from the interaction between the spin system and circularly polarized light. We find that skyrmion dynamics exhibit a limit cycle in momentum space, whose properties are determined only by physical parameters: the magnitude of the external magnetic field, the Heisenberg coupling, and the Gilbert damping constant. This method provides a theoretical explanation for the topological origin of optically controlled skyrmion motion, and it opens the possibility for efficient, low-dissipation skyrmion control using skyrmion number currents as an alternative to electric currents.
