102 research outputs found
Vortex phases in superconducting Nb thin films with periodic pinning
Magnetotransport properties have been used to investigate vortex phases in Nb films with periodic arrays of magnetic pinning centers. This kind of samples show a continuous glass transition similar to that observed in Nb plain films, but the periodic pinning yields different critical exponents and enhanced glass transition temperature at the matching field
Correlation between magnetic and transport properties in nanocrystalline Fe thin films: A grain-boundary magnetic disorder effect
We report on transport and magnetic measurements of islanded Fe(110) thin films. The electrical resistivity exhibits an anomalous increase at low temperatures, which disappears under the action of a magnetic field. Since such an anomaly completely disappears under the action of a magnetic field, it is inferred that it originates from spin-dependent scattering. We interpret the strong changes in the spin-dependent scattering in our films to be due to a low-temperature spin freezing of the island boundary magnetic regions that impedes ferromagnetic exchange between islands. A consequence of this magnetic behavior is the random arrangement of the individual magnetization, determined by the magnetocrystalline anisotropy of each island, resulting in an increase of the resistivity below the freezing temperature.Z.S. and J.L.M. acknowledge the Comunidad de Madrid for financial support. Work was performed under the financial support of the Comunidad de Madrid and the Spanish Commission of Science and Technology.Peer reviewe
Emergent Spin-Filter at the interface between Ferromagnetic and Insulating Layered Oxides
We report a strong effect of interface-induced magnetization on the transport
properties of magnetic tunnel junctions consisting of ferromagnetic manganite
LaCaMnO and insulating cuprate PrBaCuO.
Contrary to the typically observed steady increase of the tunnel
magnetoresistance with decreasing temperature, this system exhibits a sudden
anomalous decrease at low temperatures. Interestingly, this anomalous behavior
can be attributed to the competition between the positive spin polarization of
the manganite contacts and the negative spin-filter effect from the
interface-induced Cu magnetization.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, with supplemental materials (2 figures). Physical
Review Letters, in pres
Suppressed magnetization in LaCaMnO/YBaCuO superlattices
We studied the magnetic properties of LaCaMnO /
YBaCuO superlattices. Magnetometry showed that with
increasing YBaCuO layer thickness the saturation
magnetization per LaCaMnO layer decreases. From polarized
neutron reflectometry we determined that this magnetization reduction is due to
an inhomogenous magnetization depth profile arising from the suppression of
magnetization near the LaCaMnO /
YBaCuO interface. Electron energy loss spectroscopy
indicates an increased 3d band occupation of the Mn atoms in the
LaCaMnO layers at the interface. Thus, the suppression of
ferromagnetic order at the LaCaMnO /
YBaCuO interface is most likely due to charge transfer
between the two materials.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Effects of epitaxial strain on the growth mechanism of YBa2Cu3O7-x thin films in [YBa2Cu3O7-x / PrBa2Cu3O7-x] superlattices
We report on the growth mechanism of YBa2Cu3O7-x (YBCO). Our study is based
on the analysis of ultrathin, YBa2Cu3O7-x layers in c-axis oriented YBa2Cu3O7-x
/ PrBa2Cu3O7-x superlattices. We have found that the release of epitaxial
strain in very thin YBCO layers triggers a change in the dimensionality of the
growth mode. Ultrathin, epitaxially strained, YBCO layers with thickness below
3 unit cells grow in a block by block two dimensional mode coherent over large
lateral distances. Meanwhile, when thickness increases, and the strain relaxes,
layer growth turns into three dimensional, resulting in rougher layers and
interfaces.Comment: 10 pages + 9 figures, accepted in Phys. Rev.
Ferromagnetic/superconducting proximity effect in La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 / YBa2Cu3O7 superlattices
We study the interplay between magnetism and superconductivity in high
quality YBa2Cu3O7 (YBCO) / La0.7Ca0.3MnO3(LCMO)superlattices. We find evidence
for the YBCO superconductivity depression in presence of the LCMO layers. We
show that due to its short coherence length superconductivity survives in the
YBCO down to much smaller thickness in presence of the magnetic layer than in
low Tc superconductors. We also find that for a fixed thickness of the
superconducting layer, superconductivity is depressed over a thickness interval
of the magnetic layer in the 100 nm range. This is a much longer length scale
than that predicted by the theory of ferromagnetic/superconducting proximity
effect.Comment: 10 pages + 5 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
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