Topologically stable magnetization states on a spherical shell:   curvature stabilized skyrmions
  Topologically stable structures include vortices in a wide variety of matter, such as skyrmions in ferro- and antiferromagnets, and hedgehog point defects in liquid crystals and ferromagnets. These are characterized by integer-valued topological quantum numbers. In this context, closed surfaces are a prominent subject of study as they form a link between fundamental mathematical theorems and real physical systems. Here we perform an analysis on the topology and stability of equilibrium magnetization states for a thin spherical shell with easy-axis anisotropy in normal directions. Skyrmion solutions are found for a range of parameters. These magnetic skyrmions on a spherical shell have two distinct differences compared to their planar counterpart: (i) they are topologically trivial, and (ii) can be stabilized by curvature effects, even when Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions are absent. Due to its specific topological nature a skyrmion on a spherical shell can be simply induced by a uniform external magnetic field. 
Volodymyr P. Kravchuk, Ulrich K. R\"o{\ss}ler, Oleksii M. Volkov,   Denis D. Sheka, Jeroen van den Brink, Denys Makarov, Hag...
cond-mat.str-el