Altermagnets are an emerging elementary class of collinear magnets. Unlike ferromagnets, their distinct crystal symmetries inhibit magnetization while, unlike antiferromagnets, they promote strong spin polarization in the band structure. The corresponding unconventional mechanism of time-reversal symmetry breaking without magnetization in the electronic spectra has been regarded as a primary signature of altermagnetism but has not been experimentally visualized to date. We directly observe strong time-reversal symmetry breaking in the band structure of altermagnetic RuO ₂ by detecting magnetic circular dichroism in angle-resolved photoemission spectra. Our experimental results, supported by ab initio calculations, establish the microscopic electronic structure basis for a family of interesting phenomena and functionalities in fields ranging from topological matter to spintronics, which are based on the unconventional time-reversal symmetry breaking in altermagnets.

Current-induced spin-orbit torques (SOTs) allow for the efficient electrical manipulation of magnetism in spintronic devices. Engineering the SOT efficiency is a key goal that is pursued by maximizing the active interfacial spin accumulation or modulating the nonequilibrium spin density that builds up through the spin Hall and inverse spin galvanic effects. Regardless of the origin, the fundamental requirement for the generation of the current-induced torques is a net spin accumulation. We report on the large enhancement of the SOT efficiency in thulium iron garnet (TmIG)/Pt by capping with a ${\mathrm{CuO}}_x$ layer. Considering the weak spin-orbit coupling (SOC) of ${\mathrm{CuO}}_x$, these surprising findings likely result from an orbital current generated at the interface between ${\mathrm{CuO}}_x$ and Pt, which is injected into the Pt layer and converted into a spin current by strong SOC. The converted spin current decays across the Pt layer and exerts a “nonlocal” torque on TmIG. This additional torque leads to a maximum colossal enhancement of the SOT efficiency of a factor 16 for 1.5 nm of Pt at room temperature, thus opening a path to increase torques while at the same time offering insights into the underlying physics of orbital transport, which has so far been elusive.

Yttrium iron garnet (YIG, Y ₃Fe₅O₁₂) films have been epitaxially grown on Gadolinium Gallium Garnet (GGG, Gd₃Ga₅O₁₂) substrates with (100) orientation using pulsed laser deposition. The films were single-phase, epitaxial with the GGG substrate, and the root-mean-square surface roughness varied between 0.14 nm and 0.2 nm. Films with thicknesses ranging from 17 to 200 nm exhibited low coercivity (<2 Oe), near-bulk room temperature saturation moments (∼135 emu cm⁻³), in-plane easy axis, and damping parameters as low as 2.2 × 10⁻⁴. These high quality YIG thin films are useful in the investigation of the origins of novel magnetic phenomena and magnetization dynamics.

We report the observation of magnetoresistance (MR) that could originate from the orbital angular momentum (OAM) transport in a permalloy (Py)/oxidized Cu (${\mathrm{Cu}}^{*}$) heterostructure: the orbital Rashba-Edelstein magnetoresistance. The angular dependence of the MR depends on the relative angle between the induced OAM and the magnetization in a similar fashion as the spin Hall magnetoresistance. Despite the absence of elements with large spin-orbit coupling, we find a sizable MR ratio, which is in contrast to the conventional spin Hall magnetoresistance which requires heavy elements. Through Py thickness-dependence studies, we conclude another mechanism beyond the conventional spin-based scenario is responsible for the MR observed in $\mathrm{Py}/{\mathrm{Cu}}^{*}$ structures—originated in a sizable transport of OAM. Our findings not only suggest the current-induced torques without using any heavy elements via the OAM channel but also provide an important clue towards the microscopic understanding of the role that OAM transport can play for magnetization dynamics.