175 research outputs found
Constraining Galaxy Haloes from the Dispersion and Scattering of Fast Radio Bursts and Pulsars
Fast radio bursts (FRBs) can be scattered by ionized gas in their local
environments, host galaxies, intervening galaxies along their lines-of-sight,
the intergalactic medium, and the Milky Way. The relative contributions of
these different media depend on their geometric configuration and the internal
properties of the gas. When these relative contributions are well understood,
FRB scattering is a powerful probe of density fluctuations along the
line-of-sight. The precise scattering measurements for FRB 121102 and FRB
180916 allow us to place an upper limit on the amount of scattering contributed
by the Milky Way halo to these FRBs. The scattering time , where is the dispersion measure,
quantifies electron density variations with for a
smooth medium, and the dimensionless constant quantifies the
difference between the mean scattering delay and the scattering time
typically measured. A likelihood analysis of the observed scattering and halo
DM constraints finds that is at least an order of magnitude smaller
in the halo than in the Galactic disk. The maximum pulse broadening from the
halo is s at 1 GHz. We compare our analysis of the Milky
Way halo with other galaxy haloes by placing limits on the scattering
contributions from haloes intersecting the lines-of-sight to FRB 181112 and FRB
191108. Our results are consistent with haloes making negligible or very small
contributions to the scattering times of these FRBs.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, accepted to Ap
Radio Scattering Horizons for Galactic and Extragalactic Transients
Radio wave scattering can cause severe reductions in detection sensitivity
for surveys of Galactic and extragalactic fast (ms duration) transients.
While Galactic sources like pulsars are subject to scattering in the Milky Way
interstellar medium (ISM), extragalactic fast radio bursts (FRBs) can also
experience scattering in their host galaxies and other galaxies intervening
their lines-of-sight. We assess Galactic and extragalactic scattering horizons
for fast radio transients using a combination of NE2001 to model the dispersion
measure (DM) and scattering time () contributed by the Milky Way, and
independently constructed electron density models for other galaxies' ISMs and
halos that account for different galaxy morphologies, masses, densities, and
strengths of turbulence. For FRB source redshifts , an
all-sky, isotropic FRB population has values of ranging between $\sim 1\
\mu\sim 2z_{\rm s}\sim5\tau\sim 0.01 - 10020\%\tau > 5\gtrsim 40\%z_{\rm s} \sim 0.5 - 5\tau \gtrsim 1\nu\leq 800$ MHz. The percentage of FRBs selected against from scattering may
be substantially larger because our scattering predictions are conservative
compared to localized FRBs, and if circumgalactic turbulence causes density
fluctuations larger than those observed from nearby halos.Comment: 24 pages, 14 figures, submitted to Ap
Investigation of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction and room temperature skyrmions in W/CoFeB/MgO thin films and microwires
Recent studies have shown that material structures, which lack structural
inversion symmetry and have high spin-orbit coupling can exhibit chiral
magnetic textures and skyrmions which could be a key component for next
generation storage devices. The Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya Interaction (DMI) that
stabilizes skyrmions is an anti-symmetric exchange interaction favoring
non-collinear orientation of neighboring spins. It has been shown that material
systems with high DMI can lead to very efficient domain wall and skyrmion
motion by spin-orbit torques. To engineer such devices, it is important to
quantify the DMI for a given material system. Here we extract the DMI at the
Heavy Metal (HM) /Ferromagnet (FM) interface using two complementary
measurement schemes namely asymmetric domain wall motion and the magnetic
stripe annihilation. By using the two different measurement schemes, we find
for W(5 nm)/Co20Fe60B20(0.6 nm)/MgO(2 nm) the DMI to be 0.68 +/- 0.05 mJ/m2 and
0.73 +/- 0.5 mJ/m2, respectively. Furthermore, we show that this DMI stabilizes
skyrmions at room temperature and that there is a strong dependence of the DMI
on the relative composition of the CoFeB alloy. Finally we optimize the layers
and the interfaces using different growth conditions and demonstrate that a
higher deposition rate leads to a more uniform film with reduced pinning and
skyrmions that can be manipulated by Spin-Orbit Torques
Tunneling magneto thermo power in magnetic tunnel junction nanopillars
We study the tunneling magneto thermo power (TMTP) in CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB
magnetic tunnel junction nanopillars. Thermal gradients across the junctions
are generated by a micropatterned electric heater line. Thermo power voltages
up to a few tens of \muV between the top and bottom contact of the nanopillars
are measured which scale linearly with the applied heating power and hence with
the applied temperature gradient. The thermo power signal varies by up to 10
\muV upon reversal of the relative magnetic configuration of the two CoFeB
layers from parallel to antiparallel. This signal change corresponds to a large
spin-dependent Seebeck coefficient of the order of 100 \muV/K and a large TMTP
change of the tunnel junction of up to 90%.Comment: Revised version containing additional data and analyis. 13 pages, 3
figure
Biased quasi ballistic spin torque magnetization reversal
We explore the fundamental time limit of ultra fast spin torque induced
magnetization reversal of a magnetic memory cell. Spin torque precession during
a spin torque current pulse and free precessional magnetization ringing after
spin torque pulse excitation is detected by time resolved magneto transport.
Adapting the duration of the spin torque excitation pulse to the spin torque
precession period allows suppression of the magnetization ringing and thus
coherent control of the final orientation of the magnetization. In the presence
of a hard axis bias field such coherent control enables an optimum ultra fast,
quasi ballistic spin torque magnetization reversal by a single precessional
turn directly from the initial to the reversed equilibrium state.Comment: 13 pages 3 Figure
Determination of spin-dependent Seebeck coefficients of CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB magnetic tunnel junction nanopillars
We investigate the spin-dependent Seebeck coefficient and the tunneling
magneto thermopower of CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJ) in the
presence of thermal gradients across the MTJ. Thermal gradients are generated
by an electric heater on top of the nanopillars. The thermo power voltage
across the MTJ is found to scale linearly with the heating power and reveals
similar field dependence as the tunnel magnetoresistance. The amplitude of the
thermal gradient is derived from calibration measurements in combination with
finite element simulations of the heat flux. Based on this, large
spin-dependent Seebeck coefficients of the order of (240 \pm 110) \muV/K are
derived. From additional measurements on MTJs after dielectric breakdown, a
tunneling magneto thermopower up to 90% can be derived for 1.5 nm MgO based MTJ
nanopillars
Scattering variability detected from the circumsource medium of FRB 20190520B
Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are millisecond-timescale radio transients, the
origins of which are predominantly extragalactic and likely involve highly
magnetized compact objects. FRBs undergo multipath propagation, or scattering,
from electron density fluctuations on sub-parsec scales in ionized gas along
the line-of-sight. Scattering observations have located plasma structures
within FRB host galaxies, probed Galactic and extragalactic turbulence, and
constrained FRB redshifts. Scattering also inhibits FRB detection and biases
the observed FRB population. We report the detection of scattering times from
the repeating FRB 20190520B that vary by up to a factor of two or more on
minutes to days-long timescales. In one notable case, the scattering time
varied from ms to less than 3.1 ms ( confidence) over 2.9
minutes at 1.45 GHz. The scattering times appear to be uncorrelated between
bursts or with dispersion and rotation measure variations. Scattering
variations are attributable to dynamic, inhomogeneous plasma in the
circumsource medium, and analogous variations have been observed from the Crab
pulsar. Under such circumstances, the frequency dependence of scattering can
deviate from the typical power-law used to measure scattering. Similar
variations may therefore be detectable from other FRBs, even those with
inconspicuous scattering, providing a unique probe of small-scale processes
within FRB environments.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures, accepted to MNRA
Pulsar Scintillation through Thick and Thin: Bow Shocks, Bubbles, and the Broader Interstellar Medium
Observations of pulsar scintillation are among the few astrophysical probes
of very small-scale ( au) phenomena in the interstellar medium (ISM).
In particular, characterization of scintillation arcs, including their
curvature and intensity distributions, can be related to interstellar
turbulence and potentially over-pressurized plasma in local ISM
inhomogeneities, such as supernova remnants, HII regions, and bow shocks. Here
we present a survey of eight pulsars conducted at the Five-hundred-meter
Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), revealing a diverse range of scintillation
arc characteristics at high sensitivity. These observations reveal more arcs
than measured previously for our sample. At least nine arcs are observed toward
B192910 at screen distances spanning of the pulsar's pc
path-length to the observer. Four arcs are observed toward B035554, with one
arc yielding a screen distance as close as au ( pc) from either
the pulsar or the observer. Several pulsars show highly truncated,
low-curvature arcs that may be attributable to scattering near the pulsar. The
scattering screen constraints are synthesized with continuum maps of the local
ISM and other well-characterized pulsar scintillation arcs, yielding a
three-dimensional view of the scattering media in context.Comment: 20 pages, 14 figures. Submitted to MNRAS and comments welcome.
Interactive version of Figure 12 available at
https://stella-ocker.github.io/scattering_ism3d_ocker202
The nature of domain walls in ultrathin ferromagnets revealed by scanning nanomagnetometry
The recent observation of current-induced domain wall (DW) motion with large
velocity in ultrathin magnetic wires has opened new opportunities for
spintronic devices. However, there is still no consensus on the underlying
mechanisms of DW motion. Key to this debate is the DW structure, which can be
of Bloch or N\'eel type, and dramatically affects the efficiency of the
different proposed mechanisms. To date, most experiments aiming to address this
question have relied on deducing the DW structure and chirality from its motion
under additional in-plane applied fields, which is indirect and involves strong
assumptions on its dynamics. Here we introduce a general method enabling
direct, in situ, determination of the DW structure in ultrathin ferromagnets.
It relies on local measurements of the stray field distribution above the DW
using a scanning nanomagnetometer based on the Nitrogen-Vacancy defect in
diamond. We first apply the method to a Ta/Co40Fe40B20(1 nm)/MgO magnetic wire
and find clear signature of pure Bloch DWs. In contrast, we observe left-handed
N\'eel DWs in a Pt/Co(0.6 nm)/AlOx wire, providing direct evidence for the
presence of a sizable Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI) at the Pt/Co
interface. This method offers a new path for exploring interfacial DMI in
ultrathin ferromagnets and elucidating the physics of DW motion under current.Comment: Main text and Supplementary Information, 33 pages and 12 figure
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