Electrical detection of spiral spin structures in Pt|Cu2OSeO3 heterostructures

We study the spin-Hall magnetoresistance (SMR) and spin Seebeck effect (SSE) in a noncollinear insulating magnet-Pt heterostructure. We show that SMR can be used as an all-electric probe of complex spin states exhibited by the chiral magnet, Cu2OSeO3, under an applied magnetic field. The slope of the magnetic field dependence of the SMR signal changes sign at the transition between the helical and conical spiral states and shows another discontinuity when the conical spiral turns into a collinear ferromagnetic state. We demonstrate that the amplitude of the SMR signal is controlled by the cone angle theta, and that it changes sign at theta similar to 55 degrees. The angular dependence of the SMR in the multidomain helical spiral state is markedly different from the simple sinusoidal dependence observed in the monodomain conical spiral and ferromagnetic states. This complex behavior is explained within the framework of the SMR theory initially developed for collinear magnets. The SSE displays unconventional behavior where not only the magnitude but also the phase of the angular dependence of the SSE varies with the applied magnetic field.