Effects of hydrogen/deuterium absorption on the magnetic properties of Co/Pd multilayers

The effects of hydrogen (H2) and deuterium (D2) absorption were studied in two Co/Pd multilayers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) using polarized neutron reflectivity (PNR). PNR was measured in an external magnetic field H applied in the plane of the sample with the magnetization M confined in the plane for {\mu}_o H= 6.0 T and partially out of plane at 0.65 T. Nominal thicknesses of the Co and Pd layers were 2.5 {\AA} and 21 {\AA}, respectively. Because of these small values, the actual layer chemical composition, thickness, and interface roughness parameters were determined from the nuclear scattering length density profile ({\rho}_n) and its derivative obtained from both x-ray reflectivity and PNR, and uncertainties were determined using Monte Carlo analysis. The PNR {\rho}_n showed that although D2 absorption occurred throughout the samples, absorption in the multilayer stack was modest (0.02 D per Pd atom) and thus did not expand. Direct magnetometry showed that H2 absorption decreased the total M at saturation and increased the component of M in the plane of the sample when not at saturation. The PNR magnetic scattering length density ({\rho}_m) revealed that the Pd layers in the multilayer stack were magnetized and that their magnetization was preferentially modified upon D2 absorption. In one sample, a modulation of M with twice the multilayer period was observed at {\mu}_o H= 0.65 T, which increased upon D2 absorption. These results indicate that H2 or D2 absorption decreases both the PMA and total magnetization of the samples. The lack of measurable expansion during absorption indicates that these changes are primarily governed by modification of the electronic structure of the material.Comment: to appear in Physics review B, 201

Generation and detection of spin-orbit coupled neutron beams

Spin-orbit coupling of light has come to the fore in nano-optics and plasmonics, and is a key ingredient of topological photonics and chiral quantum optics. We demonstrate a basic tool for incorporating analogous effects into neutron optics: the generation and detection of neutron beams with coupled spin and orbital angular momentum. $^3$He neutron spin-filters are used in conjunction with specifically oriented triangular coils to prepare neutron beams with lattices of spin-orbit correlations, as demonstrated by their spin-dependant intensity profiles. These correlations can be tailored to particular applications, such as neutron studies of topological materials

Incommensurate magnetic order in the alpha-Fe(Te,Se) superconductor systems

Magnetic spin fluctuations is one candidate to produce the bosonic modes that mediate the superconductivity in the ferrous superconductors. Up until now, all of the LaOFeAs and BaFe2As2 structure types have simple commensurate magnetic ground states, as result of nesting Fermi surfaces. This type of spin-density-wave (SDW) magnetic order is known to be vulnerable to shifts in the Fermi surface when electronic densities are altered at the superconducting compositions. Superconductivity has more recently been discovered in alpha-Fe(Te,Se), whose electronically active antifluorite planes are isostructural to the FeAs layers found in the previous ferrous superconductors and share with them the same quasi-two-dimensional electronic structure. Here we report neutron scattering studies that reveal a unique complex incommensurate antiferromagnetic order in the parent compound alpha-FeTe. When the long-range magnetic order is suppressed by the isovalent substitution of Te with Se, short-range correlations survive in the superconducting phase.Comment: 27 pages, 7 figures, 1 tabl

Origin of the reduced exchange bias in epitaxial FeNi(111)/CoO(111) bilayer

We have employed Soft and Hard X-ray Resonant Magnetic Scattering and Polarised Neutron Diffraction to study the magnetic interface and the bulk antiferromagnetic domain state of the archetypal epitaxial Ni$_{81}$Fe$_{19}$(111)/CoO(111) exchange biased bilayer. The combination of these scattering tools provides unprecedented detailed insights into the still incomplete understanding of some key manifestations of the exchange bias effect. We show that the several orders of magnitude difference between the expected and measured value of exchange bias field is caused by an almost anisotropic in-plane orientation of antiferromagnetic domains. Irreversible changes of their configuration lead to a training effect. This is directly seen as a change in the magnetic half order Bragg peaks after magnetization reversal. A 30 nm size of antiferromagnetic domains is extracted from the width the (1/2 1/2 1/2) antiferromagnetic magnetic peak measured both by neutron and x-ray scattering. A reduced blocking temperature as compared to the measured antiferromagnetic ordering temperature clearly corresponds to the blocking of antiferromagnetic domains. Moreover, an excellent correlation between the size of the antiferromagnetic domains, exchange bias field and frozen-in spin ratio is found, providing a comprehensive understanding of the origin of exchange bias in epitaxial systems.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, submitte

Tunable (δπ, δπ)-Type Antiferromagnetic Order in α-Fe(Te,Se) Superconductors

The new α-Fe(Te,Se) superconductors share the common iron building block and ferminology with the LaFeAsO and BaFe2As2 families of superconductors. In contrast with the predicted commensurate spin-density-wave order at the nesting wave vector (π, 0), a completely different magnetic order with a composition tunable propagation vector (δπ, δπ) was determined for the parent compound Fe1+yTe in this powder and single-crystal neutron diffraction study. The new antiferromagnetic order survives as a short-range one even in the highest TC sample. An alternative to the prevailing nesting Fermi surface mechanism is required to understand the latest family of ferrous superconductors

Effect of Interface Induced Exchange Fields on Cuprate-Manganite Spin Switches

We examine the anomalous inverse spin switch behavior in La$_{0.7}$Ca$_{0.3}$MnO$_3$ (LCMO)/YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{7-\delta}$ (YBCO)/LCMO trilayers by combined transport studies and polarized neutron reflectometry. Measuring magnetization profiles and magnetoresistance in an in-plane rotating magnetic field, we prove that, contrary to many accepted theoretical scenarios, the relative orientation between the two LCMO's magnetizations is not sufficient to determine the magnetoresistance. Rather the field dependence of magnetoresistance is explained by the interplay between the applied magnetic field and the (exponential tail of the) induced exchange field in YBCO, the latter originating from the electronic reconstruction at the LCMO/YBCO interfaces.Comment: Total 7 pages,with Supplemental Material. Accepted for publication in Physical Review Letter