Dresden 2026 – scientific programme

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MA: Fachverband Magnetismus

MA 7: Poster Magnetism I

MA 7.32: Poster

Monday, March 9, 2026, 09:30–12:30, P2

High-resolution optical imaging of multiferroic domain topology in ErMnO₃ — •Andy Disheng An¹, Andrin Caviezel¹, Erik de Vos¹, Thomas Lottermoser¹, Jan Gerrit Horstmann^1,2, and Manfred Fiebig¹ — ¹Department of Materials, ETH Zürich, Switzerland — ²Institute of Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, University of Würzburg, Germany

We present a study of the multiferroic domain structure in ErMnO₃ using scanning second-harmonic generation (SHG) microscopy. As SHG can couple to both magnetic and ferroelectric orders simultaneously, this confocal technique allows for artefact-free, high-resolution imaging of multiferroic order. In the ferroelectric phase of the type-I multiferroic ErMnO₃, topological defects arise as vortices at the meeting point of their six domain states, giving rise to their characteristic six-fold cloverleaf domain pattern. Below the Néel temperature, new topological defects form at the intersection between the cloverleaf domain structure and the antiferromagnetic domain walls. We show for the first time that the SHG intensity is strongly suppressed at the vortex cores. Furthermore, recent theoretical calculations predict attractive interactions between the magnetic domain walls in hexagonal manganites [1], whereby our low-temperature scanning SHG setup is a capable and practical method for the experimental verification of these predictions.

[1] Müller A., et al., arXiv:2510.13020, (2025).

Keywords: multiferroics; second-harmonic generation (SHG); topological defects; magnetic domains; confocal imaging