Photothermal skyrmion tweezer: Programmable optical manipulation of topological quasiparticles

Magnetic skyrmions, as topological quasiparticles, have shown great potential as information carriers for next-generation spintronic technologies, including memory, logic, and computing devices. While their non-trivial topological dynamics and interactions have been extensively explored, experimental control of individual skyrmions remains largely constrained to global stimuli such as electric currents, magnetic fields, and surface acoustic waves. Precise skyrmion positioning is further hindered by the skyrmion Hall effect and defect pinning. Here, we demonstrate high-precision trapping and transport of individual skyrmions via a photothermal potential well, thereby extending optical manipulation to the quasiparticle realm. Moreover, by integrating deterministic optical skyrmion creation and annihilation with photothermal and conventional electrical transport methods, we establish a fully programmable platform for systematic investigation of skyrmion dynamics and interactions. This approach opens new avenues towards robust, reversible and scalable architectures for future skyrmionic device applications and enriches studies of light–quasiparticle interactions in solid-state systems.