  Magnetic skyrmions are topologically protected spin textures, stabilised in
systems with strong Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI). Several studies
have shown that electrical currents can move skyrmions efficiently through
spin-orbit torques. While promising for technological applications,
current-driven skyrmion motion is intrinsically collective and accompanied by
undesired heating effects. Here we demonstrate a new approach to control
individual skyrmion positions precisely, which relies on the magnetic
interaction between sample and a magnetic force microscopy (MFM) probe. We
investigate perpendicularly magnetised X/CoFeB/MgO multilayers, where for X = W
or Pt the DMI is sufficiently strong to allow for skyrmion nucleation in an
applied field. We show that these skyrmions can be manipulated individually
through the local field gradient generated by the scanning MFM probe with an
unprecedented level of accuracy. Furthermore, we show that the probe stray
field can assist skyrmion nucleation. Our proof-of-concepts results offer
current-free paradigms to efficient individual skyrmion control.
