The anomalous Hall effect (AHE) is an intriguing transport phenomenon occurring typically in ferromagnets as a consequence of broken time reversal symmetry and spin-orbit interaction. Here we show that the AHE can be artificially engineered in materials in which it is originally absent by combining the effects of symmetry breaking, spin orbit interaction and proximity-induced magnetism. In particular, we find a strikingly large AHE that emerges at the interface between a ferromagnetic manganite (La0.7Sr0.3MnO3) and a semimetallic iridate (SrIrO3).

It has topological origin and originates from the proximity-induced magnetism present in the narrow bands of strong spin-orbit coupling material SrIrO3, which yields values of anomalous Hall conductivity and Hall angle as high as those observed in bulk transition-metal ferromagnets. These results demonstrate the interplay between correlated electron physics and topological phenomena at interfaces between 3d ferromagnets and strong spin-orbit coupling 5d oxides, and trace an exciting path towards future topological spintronics at oxide interfaces.

Myoung-Woo Yoo et al., Nature Communications 12, 3283 (2021)