Emerging Chirality in Artificial Spin Ice

Artificial spin ice, made up of planar nanostructured arrays of simple ferromagnetic bars, is a playground for rich physics associated with the spin alignment of the bars and spin texture associated with the magnetic frustration at the bar vertices. The phase diagram is exotic, showing magnetic monopole-like defects and liquid and solid phases of spins arranged in loop states with predicted chiral order. We show that magnetotransport measurements in connected honeycomb structures yield the onset of an anomalous Hall signal at 50 kelvin. The temperature scale can be attributed to the long-range dipolar ice phase. The topological Hall signal arises because chiral loops form at the sample edges, indicating a generic route to exotic states via nanoarray edge structure

Dynamic imaging of the delay- and tilt-free motion of Néel domain walls in perpendicularly magnetized superlattices

We report on the time-resolved investigation of current- and field-induced domain wall motion in the flow regime in perpendicularly magnetized microwires exhibiting anti-symmetric exchange interaction by means of scanning transmission x-ray microscopy using a time step of 200 ps. The sub-ns time step of the dynamical images allowed us to observe the absence of incubation times for the motion of the domain wall within an uncertainty of 200 ps, together with indications for a negligible inertia of the domain wall. Furthermore, we observed that, for short current and magnetic field pulses, the magnetic domain walls do not exhibit a tilting during its motion, providing a mechanism for the fast, tilt-free, current-induced motion of magnetic domain walls

The non-random walk of chiral magnetic charge carriers in artificial spin ice

The flow of magnetic charge carriers (dubbed magnetic monopoles) through frustrated spin ice lattices, governed simply by Coulombic forces, represents a new direction in electromagnetism. Artificial spin ice nanoarrays realise this effect at room temperature, where the magnetic charge is carried by domain walls. Control of domain wall path is one important element of utilizing this new medium. By imaging the transit of domain walls across different connected 2D honeycomb structures we contribute an important aspect which will enable that control to be realized. Although apparently equivalent paths are presented to a domain wall as it approaches a Y-shaped vertex from a bar parallel to the field, we observe a stark non-random path distribution, which we attribute to the chirality of the magnetic charges. These observations are supported by detailed statistical modelling and micromagnetic simulations. The identification of chiral control to magnetic charge path selectivity invites analogy with spintronics

Limitations in artificial spin ice path selectivity: the challenges beyond topological control

Magnetic charge is carried through nanowire networks by domain walls, and the micromagnetic structure of a domain wall provides an opportunity to manipulate its movement. We have shown previously that magnetic monopole defects exist in artificial spin ice (ASI) and result from two bar switching at a vertex. To create and manipulate monopole defects and indeed magnetic charge in general, path selectivity of the domain wall at a vertex is required. We have recently shown that in connected ASI structures, transverse wall chirality (or topology) determines wall path direction, but a mechanism known as Walker breakdown, where a wall mutates into a wall of opposite chirality partially destroys selectivity. Recently it has been claimed that in isolated Y-shaped junctions that support vortex walls, selectivity is entirely determined by chirality (or topology), the suggestion being that vortex wall chirality is robust in the Walker breakdown process. Here we demonstrate that in Y-shaped junctions, magnetic switching in the important topologically protected regime exists only for a narrow window of field and bar geometry, and that it will be challenging to access this regime in field-driven ASI. This work has implications for the wider field of magnetic charge manipulation for high density memory storage

Incorporating usability evaluation into iterative development of an online platform to support research participation in Parkinson\u27s disease: A mixed methods protocol

\ua9 Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ. Introduction Many people with Parkinson\u27s (PwP) are not given the opportunity or do not have adequate access to participate in clinical research. To address this, we have codeveloped with users an online platform that connects PwP to clinical studies in their local area. It enables site staff to communicate with potential participants and aims to increase the participation of the Parkinson\u27s community in research. This protocol outlines the mixed methods study protocol for the usability testing of the platform. Methods and analysis We will seek user input to finalise the platform\u27s design, which will then be deployed in a limited launch for beta testing. The beta version will be used as a recruitment tool for up to three studies with multiple UK sites. Usability data will be collected from the three intended user groups: PwP, care partners acting on their behalf and site study coordinators. Usability questionnaires and website analytics will be used to capture user experience quantitatively, and a purposive sample of users will be invited to provide further feedback via semistructured interviews. Quantitative data will be analysed using descriptive statistics, and a thematic analysis undertaken for interview data. Data from this study will inform future platform iterations. Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval was obtained from the University of Plymouth (3291; 3 May 2022). We will share our findings via a \u27Latest News\u27 section within the platform, presentations, conference meetings and national PwP networks

Radio-microanalytical particle measurements method and application to Fukushima aerosols collected in Japan

A nondestructive analytical method based on autoradiography and gamma spectrometry was developed to perform activity distribution analysis for particulate samples. This was applied to aerosols collected in Fukushima Japan, 40 km north of the Daiichi nuclear power plant for a 6 week period beginning shortly after the March 2011 tsunami. For an activity distribution of 990 “hot particles” from a small filter area, the hottest particle was nearly one Bq[superscript 137+134]Cs but most of the activity in the filter was produced by particles having <50 mBq each. [superscript 134]Cs/[superscript 137]Cs activity ratios corrected to March 20, 2011 ranged from 0.68 (u[subscript c] = 28 %) to 1.3 (u[subscript c] = 15 %). The average ratio for a large quantity of particles was 0.92 (u[subscript c] = 4 %). Virtually all activity collected was beta and not alpha, suggesting little if any direct fuel debris was present at this site and time. These findings are expected to assist with separate efforts to better understand the emission events, radionuclide transport and potential environmental or biological uptake. The methods should be applicable to general environmental, radiotoxicological and similar studies for which activity distribution and particle chemistry are of importance

Pinning and hysteresis in the field dependent diameter evolution of skyrmions in Pt/Co/Ir superlattice stacks

We have imaged N\'eel skyrmion bubbles in perpendicularly magnetised polycrystalline multilayers patterned into 1 \mu m diameter dots, using scanning transmission x-ray microscopy. The skyrmion bubbles can be nucleated by the application of an external magnetic field and are stable at zero field with a diameter of 260 nm. Applying an out of plane field that opposes the magnetisation of the skyrmion bubble core moment applies pressure to the bubble and gradually compresses it to a diameter of approximately 100 nm. On removing the field the skyrmion bubble returns to its original diameter via a hysteretic pathway where most of the expansion occurs in a single abrupt step. This contradicts analytical models of homogeneous materials in which the skyrmion compression and expansion are reversible. Micromagnetic simulations incorporating disorder can explain this behaviour using an effective thickness modulation between 10 nm grains

A transmission electron microscope study of Néel skyrmion magnetic textures in multilayer thin film systems with large interfacial chiral interaction

Skyrmions in ultrathin ferromagnetic metal (FM)/heavy metal (HM) multilayer systems produced by conventional sputtering methods have recently generated huge interest due to their applications in the field of spintronics. The sandwich structure with two correctly-chosen heavy metal layers provides an additive interfacial exchange interaction which promotes domain wall or skyrmion spin textures that are Néel in character and with a fixed chirality. Lorentz transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is a high resolution method ideally suited to quantitatively image such chiral magnetic configurations. When allied with physical and chemical TEM analysis of both planar and cross-sectional samples, key length scales such as grain size and the chiral variation of the magnetisation variation have been identified and measured. We present data showing the importance of the grain size (mostly < 10 nm) measured from direct imaging and its potential role in describing observed behaviour of isolated skyrmions (diameter < 100 nm). In the latter the region in which the magnetization rotates is measured to be around 30 nm. Such quantitative information on the multiscale magnetisation variations in the system is key to understanding and exploiting the behaviour of skyrmions for future applications in information storage and logic devices

Investigating trial design variability in trials of disease-modifying therapies in Parkinson’s disease: a scoping review protocol

\ua9 Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.Introduction Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a debilitating neurological disorder for which the identification of disease-modifying interventions represents a major unmet need. Diverse trial designs have attempted to mitigate challenges of population heterogeneity, efficacious symptomatic therapy and lack of outcome measures that are objective and sensitive to change in a disease modification setting. It is not clear whether consensus is emerging regarding trial design choices. Here, we report the protocol of a scoping review that will provide a contemporary update on trial design variability for disease-modifying interventions in PD. Methods and analysis The Population, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome and Study design (PICOS) framework will be used to structure the review, inform study selection and analysis. The databases MEDLINE, Web of Science, Cochrane and the trial registry ClinicalTrials.gov will be systematically searched to identify published studies and registry entries in English. Two independent reviewers will screen study titles, abstracts and full text for eligibility, with disagreements being resolved through discussion or by a third reviewer where necessary. Data on general study information, eligibility criteria, outcome measures, trial design, retention and statistically significant findings will be extracted into a standardised form. Extracted data will be presented in a descriptive analysis. We will report our findings using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Scoping Review extension. Ethics and dissemination This work will provide an overview of variation and emerging trends in trial design choices for disease-modifying trials of PD. Due to the nature of this study, there are no ethical or safety considerations. We plan to publish our findings in a peer-reviewed journal