Asymmetric dual Bloch point domain walls in cylindrical magnetic nanowires

Abstract

Cylindrical magnetic nanowires have been studied extensively over the past ten years due to the presence of domain walls with novel topology and outstanding dynamic properties. In soft magnetic systems, where shape anisotropy forces the magnetization along the wire axis, and for radii above 50 nm, two topologically distinct walls have been previously identified. The Bloch point wall (BPW) has a circulating magnetization texture around the circumference and contains a single Bloch point within the center of the wire cross section. In contrast, asymmetric transverse walls (ATWs) have a circulating magnetization structure on the surface and contain two topological defects, a vortex and an anti-vortex on opposing sides. These surface defects are connected via a vortex tube that penetrates the volume. In this study, we have numerically investigated the domain wall magnetization textures for nickel nanowires of radii 50–120 nm. Beyond reproducing the known BPW and ATW topology, we discover a new domain wall type that contains aspects of both. This new domain wall type, which we call asymmetric dual Bloch point wall (ADBPW), has surface vortices similar to an ATW and two Bloch-point textures adjacent to the internal vortex tube. Time-resolved simulations investigating the stability of ADBPW show its field-driven transformation into a BPW via the ejection of a single Bloch point at the surface and subsequent annihilation of surface vortices.