Wätzel J., Pavlyukh Y., Schäffer A., and Berakdar J.

Endohedral molecular magnets, e.g. as realized in fullerenes containing DySc₂N, are promising candidates for molecular electronics and quantum information processing. For their functionalization an ultrafast local magnetization control is essential. Using full ab initio quantum chemistry calculations we predict the emergence of charge current loops in fullerenes with an associated orbital magnetic moment upon irradiation with weak light vortex pulses that transfer orbital angular momentum. The generated current is controllable by the frequency, the vortex topological charge, and the intensity of the light. Numerical and analytical results show that an ultraviolet vortex femtosecond pulse with an intensity ∼10¹³  W/cm² generates non-invasively nA unidirectional surface current with an associated magnetic field of hundreds μT at the center of the fullerene.

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