Quantum Theory of Spin Wave Gap in Ultrathin Magnetic Films

A simple quantum model is presented for the spin wave energy gap in single-layer and thin magnetic films that include both the magnetic out-of-plane and in-plane anisotropies. The films are assumed to be under the influence of the out-of-plane direction of the applied magnetic field at zero temperature. The calculated equations present a nonzero spin wave gap at zero magnetic field which is strongly affected by anisotropies. The effects of the film thickness and the role of the applied field are also examined. We discuss the results in connection with experimental data reported for nanocrystalline amorphous CoFeB films with growth-induced anisotropy.     

Magnetic Properties of Single Crystalline Co2MnAl Heusler Alloy Thin Films

Ferromagnetic resonance measurements were carried out for single crystalline Co₂MnAl thin films as a function of the angle between applied external magnetic field and normal of the film surface. In- and out-of-plane angular dependence of the resonance field and only out-of-plane angular dependence of the linewidth of FMR spectra were analyzed using the Landau?CLifshitz?CGilbert equation. The easy and hard axes were determined by analyzing the in-plane angular dependence of resonant field. The films annealed at various temperatures showed four-fold magnetic anisotropy symmetry and the damping factor was estimated from the analysis of the angular dependency of FMR spectra.     

Oblique-field annealing effect for in-plane magnetic anisotropy ofsoft magnetic Co-Nb-Zr thin films

The effect of annealing in a magnetic field applied obliquely to the surface of soft magnetic thin films has been investigated. This annealing method was found to be extremely effective to control in-plane magnetic anisotropy without a change of annealing temperature and to suppress local anisotropy dispersion. For sputtered amorphous Co_85.5Nb_8.9Zr_5.6 thin films, it has been found that the in-plane uniaxial anisotropy energy was varied from 250 J/m³ to near zero with the coercive force H_c less than 6.5 A/m by changing the oblique-field annealing angle α. Experimental values of in-plane anisotropy energy agreed well with calculated ones predicted from α and intrinsic anisotropy induced by quasi-directional ordering. These films showed good high frequency characteristics for applying to miniaturized inductive devices     

Ferromagnetic Resonance Study of Fe/Cu Multilayer Thin Film

Fe/Cu/Fe multilayer thin film was grown on Si (100) substrate by using magnetron sputtering technique at room temperature. Dynamic and static magnetisations of the film have been investigated using ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) techniques in the temperature range of 10–300 K. From the room-temperature in-plane FMR measurements, a growth-induced uniaxial magnetic anisotropy was observed. Out-of-plane FMR measurements exhibited a large magnetic anisotropy due to a large saturation magnetisation of Fe. A computer code was written to simulate the experimental FMR data and to obtain the magnetic parameters of the Fe/Cu/Fe multilayer thin film. g value, effective magnetisation, uniaxial anisotropy field and perpendicular anisotropy constant from the fitting of the angular dependence of the resonance field at both the in-plane and out-of plane geometries were determined. The exchange bias effect was observed from the low-temperature VSM measurements. The saturation magnetisation and coercive field decrease with increasing temperature due to the increase of the thermal fluctuations.     

Experimental Evidence for Spin-Triplet Superconductivity in Sr2RuO4

We review the experimental evidence for spin-triplet superconductivity in Sr₂RuO₄. The Knight shift experiments decisively demonstrated that the Cooper-pair symmetry is spin triplet. We discuss the most probable wave function of the Cooper pairs on the basis of the results of a number of key experiments. We point out that a simple picture of the unitary state with the isotropic gap is not compatible with the observed behavior of the specific heat, and that a profound modification of the pairing wave function is needed. We also present the in-plane angular dependence of the upper critical field, with the field applied exactly parallel to the quasi-two-dimensional plane. We discuss the possible implication of the observed fourfold anisotropy in connection with the proposed second superconducting state with a line-node gap.     

A spin wave resonance study on reentrant Au77Fe23 films

Thin films prepared by both flash and slow evaporation of the bulk Au₇₇Fe₂₃ alloy have been studied by electron spin resonance (ESR) technique at the temperature range between 77–300 K. A series of spin wave resonance (SWR) peaks were observed at all temperatures when the external de magnetic field is applied along the directions lying in a small angular interval with respect to the film normal. The classical spin wave model has been used to analyze the experimental data. The magnetic parameters, such as exchange stiffness constant, the effective bulk and the surface anisotropy energy parameters of the system have been derived as a function of temperature. While the easy plane surface anisotropy almost remains constant, considerable increments were found in the exchange parameter, the magnetization and the linewidth with decreasing temperature. The SWR linewidths for the films obtained by slow evaporation at higher substrate temperatures are noticeably smaller compared to those of the film prepared by flash evaporation technique.     

Micromagnetic study of ultrathin magnetic films

The phenomenon of spin reorientations in ultrathin magnetic films is discussed. A micromagnetic theory is presented which reveals the competition between the in-plane shape anisotropy and the normal surface anisotropy through a finite exchange stiffness. For small surface anisotropy, two continuous transitions in spin orientation are derived as the film thickness is increased: first from the uniform, normal configuration to a nonuniform, canting configuration, and then to the uniform, in-plane configuration. This result is consistent with experimental observations. For large surface anisotropy, it is derived theoretically that only the first spin reorientation occurs and the canting configuration remains stable even at large thickness limit.     

Soft magnetic property and magnetization reversal mechanism of Sm doped FeCo thin film for high-frequency application

A series of (Fe_0.67Co_0.33)_1 − xSm_x (0 ≤ x < 0.25) thin films with thickness around 110 nm have been fabricated on silicon(111) substrates by magnetron co-sputtering at ambient condition with a 2.4 kA/m magnetic field applied in the film plane during deposition. With the Sm concentration increasing, FeCo grain size gradually decreases and FeCoSm film eventually becomes amorphous, while the isotropic magnetic property changes to in-plane uniaxial anisotropy as long as Sm is doped. The investigation of the angular dependence of coercivity and switching field indicates that the magnetization reversal mechanism of FeCoSm film is domain-wall depinning and coherent rotation when the applied field is close to the easy axis and hard axis, respectively. The anisotropy field and the resonance frequency of FeCoSm films can be tuned in the range of 15.0-109.5 kA/m and 5.2-11.8 GHz, respectively, by controlling the content of Sm, indicating that FeCoSm films have much potential in high-frequency applications.     

Spin Transport in (110) GaAs-Based Cavity Structures

The anisotropic spin dephasing of optically generated electrons in an undoped (110) GaAs quantum well inside a microcavity structure is investigated by means of spatially resolved photoluminescence experiments at a temperature of T=80 K. The dynamic type-II potential modulation induced by a surface acoustic wave (SAW) is used to transport electrons spatially separated from holes. Thus, the D’yakonov–Perel’ (DP) and the Bir–Aronov–Pikus spin dephasing mechanisms are suppressed, and electron spins can be transported over long distances of about 24 μm, which correspond to spin lifetimes of at least 8 ns. The spin vector can be rotated by an external in-plane magnetic field or by the effective in-plane field resulting from the structural inversion anisotropy induced by an intense SAW. This rotation generates an in-plane spin component that is subject to the DP spin dephasing mechanism. By means of Hanle effect measurements the lifetime of this in-plane spin component is found to be of 0.7 ns.     

Rotation Speed-Induced Uniaxial In-Plane Anisotropy in Thin Films Deposited Onto a Rotating Substrate

The Rotating Cryostat system consists of a rapidly rotating, liquid-nitrogen-cooled drum, around which a substrate can be placed. The possibility of using multiport sources gives the system wide capabilities for producing new materials. The effects of various rotation speeds of 1900, 1500, 1000, 500, and 0 rpm on the magnetic properties of thin iron films deposited on different (glass, silicon, and Kapton) substrates from a resistively heated evaporation source and a dc sputtering source have been investigated. Magnetic measurement showed that the films have an in-plane magnetic anisotropy for all films deposited at high speeds on all types of substrates and the degree of magnetic anisotropy decreased with decreasing rotational speed for flexible Kapton substrate. While the glass and silicon substrates was stationary, in-plane magnetic anisotropy of the films dropped down to zero. The films deposited on Kapton showed the rotational-speed-dependent magnetic properties. Estimation of magnetic anisotropy confirms in-plane anisotropy in the films. Furthermore, as expected for all iron films no magnetic anisotropy perpendicular to film plane was observed irrespective of rotation speed and type of substrate used.     

Orbital Viscosity in Superfluid 3He-B in a Magnetic Field

No Heading Orbital viscosity is usually associated with the A phase of superfluid ³He which has a finite orbital angular momentum even in zero magnetic field. The B phase has no orbital angular momentum in zero magnetic field, but both spin and orbital angular momenta are induced by a field. The Leggett equations for spin dynamics assume that the orbital angular momentum can only charge on timescales much longer than those involved in spin dynamics. We calculate the orbital viscosity of the B phase in both the hydrodynamic and ballistic limits. At low temperatures the orbital viscosity becomes vanishingly small which gives rise to the possibility of coupled spin-orbit dynamics.PACS numbers: 67.57.Hi, 67.57.Lm     

FeNHf软磁薄膜中磁各向异性对太赫兹波调控的研究

本文制备了具有磁各向异性的纳米FeNHf软磁薄膜,表征了FeNHf薄膜的微结构、磁性能、微波磁动力学行为和磁各向异性对太赫兹波传输特性的影响.FeNHf薄膜的难轴方向具有410的磁导率,易轴方向没有磁导率信号,磁各向异性场为2537.65 A/m.FeNHf薄膜在1.04 THz时出现了共振吸收峰,当调控磁化强度方向分...     

Magnetic and optical properties of amorphous NdFeCo thin films by pulsed laser deposition technique

Rare earth and transition metal doped (NdFeCo) thin films were fabricated on Si (100) substrate by pulsed laser deposition technique keeping the substrate at constant temperature of 300 °C. A KrF Excimer laser (248 nm, 20 ns) was used as an energy source for the deposition. Thin films were deposited without and under the influence of transverse magnetic field applied across the plume. The applied magnetic field was varied from 3 to 6 kOe. The deposited films were characterized by XRD, FESEM, VSM and SE (Spectroscopic Ellipsometry). The deposited films were amorphous in nature. All the films regardless of the applied magnetic field exhibit perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. The thickness of the thin films was found to increase monotonically from 166 to 266 nm with the increase in the applied external magnetic field. The saturation magnetization has a maximum value of 1682 emu/cc for the film deposited under 4.5 kOe magnetic field. The value of optical band gap energy for the same film is found to have a maximum value of 3.1 eV. The values of both the saturation magnetization and the band gap energy were decreased with the increase in the applied magnetic field.     

Magnetic field dependence of the lowest-frequency edge-localized spin wave mode in a magnetic nanotriangle

An understanding of the spin dynamics of nanoscale magnetic elements is important for their applications in magnetic sensing and storage. Inhomogeneity of the demagnetizing field in a non-ellipsoidal magnetic element results in localization of spin waves near the edge of the element. However, relative little work has been carried out to investigate the effect of the applied magnetic fields on the nature of such localized modes. In this study, micromagnetic simulations are performed on an equilateral triangular nanomagnet to investigate the magnetic field dependence of the mode profiles of the lowest-frequency spin wave. Our findings reveal that the lowest-frequency mode is localized at the base edge of the equilateral triangle. The characteristics of its mode profile change with the ground state magnetization configuration of the nanotriangle, which, in turn, depends on the magnitude of the in-plane applied magnetic field.     

Real-space observation of skyrmion lattice in helimagnet MnSi thin samples

Observing and characterizing the spin distributions on a nanometer scale are of vital importance for understanding nanomagnetism and its application to spintronics. The magnetic structure in MnSi thin samples prepared from a bulk, which undergoes a transition from a helix to a skyrmion lattice, was investigated by in situ observation using Lorentz microscopy. Stripe domains were observed at zero applied field below 22.5 K. A skyrmion lattice with 6-fold symmetry in real space appeared when a field of 0.18 T was applied normal to the film plane. The lattice constant was estimated to be 18 nm, almost identical to the helical period. In comparison with the marginally stable skyrmion phase in a bulk sample, the skyrmion phase was stable over a wide range of temperatures and magnetic fields in the thin samples.     

Engineering magnetic nanostructures with inverse hysteresis loops

Top-down lithography techniques allow the fabrication of nanostructured elements with novel spin configurations,which provide a new route to engineer and manipulate the magnetic response of sensors and electronic devices and understand the role of fundamental interactions in materials science.In this study, shallow nanostructure-pattemed thin films were designed to present inverse magnetization curves,i.e.,an anomalous magnetic mechanism characterized by a negative coercivity and negative remanence.This procedure involved a method for manipulating the spin configuration that yielded a negative coercivity after the patterning of a single material layer.Patterned NiFe thin films with trench depths between 15％-25％ of the total film thickness exhibited inverse hysteresis loops for a wide angular range of the applied field and the trench axis.A model based on two exchange-coupled subsystems accounts for the experimental results and thus predicts the conditions for the appearance of this magnetic behavior.The findings of the study not only advance our understanding of patterning effects and confined magnetic systems but also enable the local design and control of the magnetic response of thin materials with potential use in sensor engineering.     

Propagation and amplification of gap waves between a piezoelectric half-space and a semiconductor film

Summary. We study wave propagation in a piezoelectric ceramic half-space with a thin semiconductor film and an air gap between the film and the half-space. Two-dimensional equations for a thin film are used to model the semiconductor film and the air gap. The half-space is governed by the three-dimensional equations of linear piezoelectricity. It is shown that an anti-plane wave can propagate in such a system. An equation that determines the dispersion relation of the wave is obtained. Solutions to the equation show that the wave has both dispersion and attenuation, and can be amplified by a biasing dc electric field.     

Structure and Microscopic Magnetism of Epitaxial Ni–Mn–Ga Films

We report on the structural and magnetic properties of epitaxial thin films of the ferromagnetic shape memory material Ni–Mn–Ga prepared by DC magnetron sputter deposition. Different substrate materials, i.e., MgO(100) and Al₂O₃(11?20) allow for a tailored epitaxial growth. Using a sacrificial chromium buffer layer freestanding epitaxial films are obtained. In combination with photolithography partially freestanding structures such as microbridges are fabricated. The complex martensite crystal structure in substrate‐constrained and freestanding films is studied by means of X‐ray diffraction. The identified asymmetric twin variant configuration is associated with a macroscopic surface pattern observed by optical microscopy. The absence of magnetic‐field induced strain in the (100) oriented samples is explained on basis of the detected twin variant configuration using a simplified model. Taking advantage of the thin film geometry spectroscopic methods are applied to the samples. The measurements provide the first experimental test for changes in the electronic structure of the involved 3d metals during a martensitic transition. Exploiting the X‐ray magnetic circular dichroism quantitative information on the element‐specific spin and orbital magnetic moments are accessed. In addition, angular‐dependent experiments allow us to trace the microscopic origin of the magnetic anisotropy in Ni₂MnGa improving the fundamental understanding of this material.     

Spin Wave Resonances in GaMnAs

Ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) measurements were carried out on a series of GaMnAs thin films with different thicknesses grown by low temperature molecular beam epitaxy. Clear spin wave resonances were observed in addition to FMR when the applied magnetic field was perpendicular to the film plane. The spin wave spectra show a nearly linear dependence of the resonance mode positions on the mode number, suggesting that the magnetization profile of the GaMnAs films is not uniform in the growth direction. A first-order analysis of these effects is presented along with the experimental data.