Strongly exchange coupled inverse ferrimagnetic soft/hard, Mn(x)Fe(3-x)O(4)/Fe(x)Mn(3-x)O(4), core/shell heterostructured nanoparticles

Inverted soft/hard, in contrast to conventional hard/soft, bi-magnetic core/shell nanoparticles of Mn xFe 3-xO 4/Fe xMn 3-xO 4 with two different core sizes (7.5 and 11.5 nm) and fixed shell thickness (∼0.6 nm) have been synthesized. The structural characterization suggests that the particles have an interface with a graded composition. The magnetic characterization confirms the inverted soft/hard structure and evidences a strong exchange coupling between the core and the shell. Moreover, larger soft core sizes exhibit smaller coercivities and loop shifts, but larger blocking temperatures, as expected from spring-magnet or graded anisotropy structures. The results indicate that, similar to thin film systems, the magnetic properties of soft/hard core/shell nanoparticles can be fine tuned to match specific application

Robust antiferromagnetic coupling in hard-soft bi-magnetic core/shell nanoparticles

The growing miniaturization demand of magnetic devices is fuelling the recent interest in bi-magnetic nanoparticles as ultimate small components. One of the main goals has been to reproduce practical magnetic properties observed so far in layered systems. In this context, although useful effects such as exchange bias or spring magnets have been demonstrated in core/shell nanoparticles, other interesting key properties for devices remain elusive. Here we show a robust antiferromagnetic (AFM) coupling in core/shell nanoparticles which, in turn, leads to the foremost elucidation of positive exchange bias in bi-magnetic hard-soft systems and the remarkable regulation of the resonance field and amplitude. The AFM coupling in iron oxide manganese oxide based, soft/hard and hard/soft, core/shell nanoparticles is demonstrated by magnetometry, ferromagnetic resonance and X-ray magnetic circular dichroism. Monte Carlo simulations prove the consistency of the AFM coupling. This unique coupling could give rise to more advanced applications of bi-magnetic core/shell nanoparticles

Origin of the interlayer exchange coupling in [Co/Pt]/NiO/ [Co/Pt] multilayers studied with XAS, XMCD, and micromagnetic modeling

The origin of the oscillatory interlayer exchange coupling in [Co/Pt] /NiO/ [Co/Pt] multilayers is investigated using advanced microscopy and spectroscopy techniques and micromagnetic modeling. X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) measurements show the presence of the canting of Ni spins in the NiO film being greater for antiferromagnetically coupled multilayers than for ferromagnetically coupled ones. This behavior is consistent with the model, which assumes a different sign of the exchange coupling at the two interfaces and the antiferromagnetic layer-by-layer coupling in the NiO film. An unexpectedly short attenuation length of 4 Å for secondary electrons in NiO is measured, which has implications for the interpretation of XMCD data. Domain images obtained using XMCD-photoemission electron microscopy at the Co and Ni resonances indicate that the canting of the Ni spins occurs on both a microscopic and macroscopic scale. The average size of the domains is shown to increase with exchange coupling strength. In antiferromagnetically coupled samples, the competition between magnetostatic and interlayer exchange effects gives rise to a region of overlapping domains. The size of this region scales inversely with coupling strength. Finally, the temperature dependence of the interlayer coupling shows both reversible and irreversible effects. The irreversible effects stem from oxidation/reduction reactions at the Co/NiO interface. The reversible effects stem from the temperature dependences of the many factors that play a role in the interlayer coupling and exhibit nonmonotonic temperature dependence

Erratum to: Genetic analysis of over 1 million people identifies 535 new loci associated with blood pressure traits

In the version of this article originally published, the name of author Martin H. de Borst was coded incorrectly in the XML. The error has now been corrected in the HTML version of the paper