Detecting Magnetoelectric Effect in a Metallic Antiferromagnet via Nonreciprocal Rotation of Reflected Light

Certain types of media breaking both space-inversion (P) and time-reversal (T) symmetries but preserving their combination PT exhibit the polarization rotation of reflected light even when that of transmitted light is prohibited. Such an effect is termed nonreciprocal rotation of reflected light (NRR). Although NRR shows nearly the same phenomenon as the magnetooptical Kerr effect or, equivalently, the Hall effect at optical frequencies, its origin is distinct and ascribed to a magnetoelectric (ME) effect at optical frequencies, i.e., the optical ME effect. Here we show the observation of NRR in a metallic antiferromagnet TbB4. The result demonstrates that the ME effect in a metallic system, which is considered to be ill defined, can be detected using reflected light. Furthermore, we spatially resolve antiferromagnetic domains in TbB4 by microscope observations of NRR. Our work offers a unique way to probe the ME effect in metallic systems.