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Spin-orbit effects at heavy metal/ferromagnet interfaces can give rise to the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction, promoting chiral magnetization textures applicable in thin film devices. Here, the authors use Brillouin light scattering to study the dependence of this interaction on film thickness.

Manganese oxide self-organizes on Ir(100) surfaces to form arrays of one-dimensional chains, providing a model system to study emergent magnetic behaviour. Schmitt et al. demonstrate they host chiral magnetism mediated by Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya-enhanced RKKY interactions.

Magnons are excitations of magnetic materials that can have topological properties similar to those of electrons. Here, the authors show that the magnons of the bulk ferromagnet Mn₅Ge₃ are topological and can be controlled with a magnetic field.

The Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya exchange induces a range of chiral phenomena in spintronic systems. Experiments now confirm that this interaction is proportional to the Heisenberg exchange, reflecting their common origins despite their opposite symmetries.

The mechanism of the interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction in heavy metal-ferromagnet heterostructures is debated. Here, the authors show the oscillating behaviour of the interaction as a function of the MgO spacer layer thickness, supporting the interlayer exchange coupling mechanism of the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida type.

Oxygen-mediated superexchange (or Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya) interactions result in weak ferromagnetism in oxides. A method based on the interference of synchrotron X-ray radiation is now shown to enable the determination of the sign of the Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction in the prototypical weak ferromagnet iron borate.

Skyrmions, localized defects in the magnetization, can be stabilised in materials by the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI). Hoffmann et al. predict that, when the DMI is anisotropic, antiskyrmions can be formed and coexist with skyrmions, enabling studies and exploitation of their interactions.

Small-angle neutron scattering experiments of the layered antiferromagnet Ca₃Ru₂O₇ reveal a metamagnetic spin texture that is indicative of an extraordinary coexistence of spin orders belonging to different symmetries.

Single crystals of a two-dimensional quantum spin system with geometric frustration lead to the observation of a ‘pinwheel’ valence-bond ground state. In this case, the distortion of the ideal kagome lattice structure helps to stabilize the quantum spin state.

Frustration-induced dimensional reduction is manifested in lower dimensionality of magnetic correlations compared to that of the magnetic structure. Here the authors demonstrate the role of the uniform Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction in the recently synthesized material Ca3ReO5Cl2 exhibiting dimensional reduction.

Information technology based on few atom magnets requires both long spin-energy relaxation times and flexible inter-bit coupling. Here, the authors show routes to manipulate information in three-atom clusters strongly coupled to substrate electrons by exploiting Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interactions.

The Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya exchange interaction arises in magnetic systems with broken inversion symmetry and promotes chiral magnetic order which may be exploited in spintronic devices. Here, the authors demonstrate how such an interaction between magnetic atoms on a metallic surface may be tuned by their separation.

A system’s properties near a quantum phase transition scale differently than near a finite-temperature phase transition. Here, the authors identify an anomalously small dynamic scaling exponent from magnetization and specific heat measurements in the itinerant ferromagnet SrCaRuO which is at odds with current theory.

The coupling of ferroelectric and antiferromagnetic order in BiFeO₃ makes it appealing for applications however the presence of domain structure acts to undermine this potential. Here, the authors demonstrate BiFeO₃thin films with a single domain of electrical polarization and canted antiferromagnetic order.

The control of different types of magnetic order is central to the study and development of spintronic devices. Here, the authors evidence an exchange-stabilized helix state with a low energy barrier for reversal in a room-temperature antiferromagnetic Heusler material.

Magnetic skyrmions can be stabilized at room temperature in cobalt layers sandwiched between heavy metal layers due to engineering of the interfacial Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction.

In the ultrafast manipulation of magnetization by light, it is thought that the electric field couples only indirectly to spins via spin-orbit interaction. Here, the authors demonstrate inverse magneto-refraction, a direct optical modification of the exchange interaction allowed for any material symmetry.

Spin-polarized scanning tunneling microscopy, where a magnetized tip probes the surface, is used to study an atomic layer of manganese. Magnetic order with a specific chirality is observed; a 'left-rotating' spin spiral structure with a period of about 12 nm. The findings confirm the significance of homochirality for nanoscale magnets, which could play a role in the design novel spintronic devices.

The pressure dependence and magnetic field dependence of the specific heat of a quantum magnet, SrCu₂(BO₃)₂, demonstrate that its phase diagram contains a line of first-order transitions terminating at a critical point, in analogy with water.

The Weyl fermions in NdAlSi mediate a helical incommensurate spin density wave, providing a rare example of Weyl-mediated collective phenomena.

The dynamic properties of Néel skyrmions in magnetic thin films have remained elusive. Here, the authors report distinct resonances in Ir/Fe/Co/Pt heterostructures whose frequencies vary with the skyrmion configuration and multilayer architecture, thus opening a path to microwave applications.

A new type of skyrmion is identified in the chiral magnetic material Cu₂OSeO₃ at low temperature. This is the first time that a single material has been shown to exhibit more than one distinct skyrmion phase.

An experimental study of a ‘dimeric’ single-molecule magnet—consisting of two coupled half-wheels of spin 7/2 each—provides evidence for quantum interference between the two sub-systems.

The motion of electrons in a complex magnetic background may generate novel magnetic interactions. Here, Grytsiuk et al. report that a peculiar orbital motion of electrons in response to a non-coplanarity of neighbouring spins leads to a topological orbital moment, which further gives rise to a new class of magnetic interactions.

The authors demonstrate high-order terahertz nonlinear magnonics using two-dimensional coherent spectroscopy, revealing the emergence of seventh-order spin-wave mixing and sixth harmonic magnon generation within an antiferromagnetic orthoferrite.

Sr₃Ru₂O₇ exhibits a quantum critical point tunable by magnetic field and has been widely used in the study of criticality. Here, by using inelastic neutron scattering, the authors measure collective magnetic excitations near the quantum critical point and relate them to thermodynamic properties and spin density wave order.

Magnetic interactions in solids are usually short-range or else they involve itinerant electrons. Here, the authors evidence a long-range magnetic coupling mediated by orbital moments in a polar spacer layer of nonmagnetic insulating oxide, with a sign which oscillates with spacer thickness.

BiFeO₃is one of the most widely studied multiferroic materials, as it offers a strong coupling between magnetism and electric polarization up to room temperature. Here, studying monodomain crystals, the authors find an additional electric polarization component orthogonal to the widely studied one.

The symmetry, microscopy and spectroscopy signatures of altermagnetism are reviewed, and compared with traditional ferromagnetism and Néel antiferromagnetism, and magnetic phases with symmetry-protected compensated non-collinear spin orders.

The creation of practical devices based on magnetic skyrmions depends on the development of methods to create and control stable individual skyrmions. Here, the authors present a bilayer device that uses dipolar interactions to stabilize skyrmions that can be manipulated using electric currents.

A Néel-type skyrmion lattice is found to be formed in the lacunar spinel GaV₄S₈—a polar magnetic semiconductor with rhombohedral symmetry and easy axis anisotropy.