Control of magnetic vortex polarity by the phase difference between voltage signals

Using micromagnetic simulations, we investigate the voltage control of magnetic vortex polarity based on a designed multiferroic heterostructure that contains two separate piezoelectric films beneath a magnetostrictive nanodisk. The results show that controllable switching of vortex polarity can be achieved by proper modulation of the phase difference between two sinusoidal voltage pulses V-1 and V-2, which are applied to the two separate piezoelectric films, respectively. The frequencies of V-1 and V-2 are set at the gyrotropic eigenfrequency f(G) of the nanodisk, and the vortex polarity switching is completed via the nucleation-annihilation process of the vortex-antivortex pair. Our findings provide an additional effective means for ultralow power switching of the magnetic vortex, which lays the foundation for voltage-controlled vortex random access memory. Published by AIP Publishing.