Skyrmion crystals in centrosymmetric itinerant magnets without horizontal mirror plane

Abstract

Abstract We theoretically investigate a new stabilization mechanism of a skyrmion crystal (SkX) in centrosymmetric itinerant magnets with magnetic anisotropy. By considering a trigonal crystal system without the horizontal mirror plane, we derive an effective spin model with an anisotropic Ruderman–Kittel–Kasuya–Yosida (RKKY) interaction for a multi-band periodic Anderson model. We find that the anisotropic RKKY interaction gives rise to two distinct SkXs with different skyrmion numbers of one and two depending on a magnetic field. We also clarify that a phase arising from the multiple-Q spin density waves becomes a control parameter for a field-induced topological phase transition between the SkXs. The mechanism will be useful not only for understanding the SkXs, such as that in Gd $$_2$$ 2 PdSi $$_3$$ 3 , but also for exploring further skyrmion-hosting materials in trigonal itinerant magnets.