Magnetic skyrmion, a nanosized spin texture with topological property, has become an area of significant interest due to the scientific insight that it can provide and also its potential impact on applications such as ultra-low-energy and ultra-high-density logic gates. In the quest for the reconfiguration of single logic device and the implementation of the complete logic functions, a novel reconfigurable skyrmion logic (RSL) is proposed and verified by micromagnetic simulations. Logic functions including AND, OR, NOT, NAND, NOR, XOR, and XNOR are implemented in the ferromagnetic (FM) nanotrack by virtue of various effects including spin orbit torque, skyrmion Hall effect, skyrmion-edge repulsions, and skyrmion-skyrmion collision. Different logic functions can be selected in an RSL by applying voltage to specific region(s) of the device, changing the local anisotropy energy of FM film. Material properties and geometrical scaling studies suggest RSL gates fit for energy-efficient computing as well as provide the guidelines for the design and optimization of this new logic family.

Skyrmions have received considerable attention in various studies since the experimental observation in magnetic materials in 2009. Skyrmions, which are topological, particle-like localized structures, show significant fundamental research value in the field of physics and materials and are also regarded as novel information carriers that have the potential for use in developing high-density, low-power, and multi-functional spintronic devices. In this Perspective, we first overview the development, structure, and materials of skyrmions. Subsequently, we focus on the recent progress in skyrmion devices for memory and logic applications and discuss their challenges and prospects.

Memristors, demonstrated by solid-state devices with continuously tunable resistance, [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] have emerged as a new paradigm for self-adaptive networks that require synapse-like functions (artificial synapse, for example). Spin-based memristors offer advantages over other types of memristors because of their significant endurance and high energy efficiency. [8,9] Yet, it remains a challenge to build dense and functional spintronic memristors with structures and materials that are compatible with existing ferromagnetic devices. [10] Here, a memristive device based upon Ta/CoFeB/MgO heterostructures is demonstrated, which are commonly used in out-of-plane magnetized magnetic tunnel junctions. [11] To achieve the memristive function, a domain wall (DW) is driven back and forth in a continuous manner in the CoFeB layer by applying in-plane positive or negative current pulses along the Ta layer, utilizing the spin-orbit torque (SOT) that the current exerts on the CoFeB magnetization. [12][13][14][15][16][17] Hence, Memristors, demonstrated by solid-state devices with continuously tunable resistance, have emerged as a new paradigm for self-adaptive networks that require synapse-like functions (artificial synapse, for example). Spin-based memristors offer advantages over other types of memristors because of their significant endurance and high energy efficiency. Yet it remains a challenge to build dense and functional spintronic memristors with structures and materials that are compatible with existing ferromagnetic devices. Here, a memristive device based upon Ta/CoFeB/MgO heterostructures is demonstrated, which are commonly used in out-of-plane magnetized magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJ). To achieve the memristive function, a domain wall (DW) is driven back and forth in a continuous manner in the CoFeB layer by applying in-plane positive or negative current pulses along the Ta layer, utilizing the spin-orbit torque (SOT) that the current exerts on the CoFeB magnetization. Hence, the magnetization and consequently the anomalous Hall effect (AHE) resistance are modulated in an analog manner, being controlled by the pulsed current characteristics including amplitude, duration, and repetition number. The quasi-continuous AHE resistance variation is explained by the SOT-induced DW creep motion. These results pave the way for developing SOT-based energy-efficient neuromorphic systems.

Magnetic skyrmions have potential applications in novel information devices with excellent energy efficiency. However, the skyrmion Hall effect (SkHE) could cause skyrmions moving in a nanotrack to get annihilated at the track edge. In this work, we discovered that the SkHE is depressed by modifying the magnetic structure at the edge of a track, and thus the skyrmion can move in almost a straight line at a high speed. Unlike the inner part of a track with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, the edge layer exhibits in-plane magnetic anisotropy, and the orientation of edge moments is opposite that at the perimeter of skyrmions nearby. As a result, an enhanced repulsive force acts on the skyrmion to oppose the Magnus force that causes the SkHE. Additionally, the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI) constant of the edge layer also matters. When there is no DMI at the edge layer, the transverse displacement of the skyrmion can be depressed effectively when the width of the edge layer is sufficiently large. However, when the inner part and the edge share the same DMI constant, non-monotonically varied transverse displacement occurs because of the Néel-wall-like structure at the edge layer.

Information security is of great importance for the approaching Internet of things (IoT) era. Physically unclonable functions (PUFs) have been intensively studied for information security. However, silicon PUFs are vulnerable to hazards such as modeling and side-channel attacks. Here we demonstrate a magnetic analogue PUF based on perpendicularly magnetized Ta/CoFeB/MgO heterostructures. The perpendicular magnetic anisotropy originates from the CoFeB/MgO interface, which is sensitive to the subnanometer variation of MgO thickness within a certain range (0.6−1.3 nm). When the MgO layer is thinned, a thickness variation resulting from ion milling nonuniformity induces unclonable random distributions of easy-axis magnetization orientations in heterostructures. The analogue PUF can provide a much larger key size than a conventional binary-bit counterpart. Moreover, after the thinning process, the unique easy-axis magnetization orientation in each single device was formed, which can avoid setting random states to realize low power consumption and high-density integration. This magnetic PUF is a promising innovative primitive for secret key generation and storage with high security in the IoT era.