Direct visualization of dynamic magnetic coupling in a Co/Py bilayer with picosecond and nanometer resolution

We present a combination of ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) with spatially and time-resolved X-ray absorption spectroscopy in a scanning transmission X-ray microscope (STXM-FMR). The transverse high frequency component of the resonantly excited magnetization is measured with element-specifity in a Permalloy (Py) disk - Cobalt (Co) stripe bilayer microstructure. STXM-FMR mappings are snapshots of the local magnetization-precession with nm spatial resolution and ps temporal resolution. We directly observe the transfer of angular momentum from Py to Co and vice versa at their respective element-specific resonances. A third resonance could be observed in our experiments, which is identified as a coupled resonance of Py and Co.Comment: Version submitted to Physical Review Applied with updated author list and supplemental information (Ancillary file

Unidirectional anisotropy in cubic FeGe with antisymmetric spin-spin-coupling

We report strong unidirectional anisotropy in bulk polycrystalline B20 FeGe measured by ferromagnetic resonance spectroscopy. Bulk and micron-sized samples were produced and analytically characterized. FeGe is a B20 compound with inherent Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction. Lorenz microscopy confirms a skyrmion lattice at $190 \; \text{K}$ in a magnetic field of 150 mT. Ferromagnetic resonance was measured at $276 \; \text{K} \pm 1 \; \text{K}$, near the Curie temperature. Two resonance modes were observed, both exhibit a unidirectional anisotropy of $K=1153 \; \text{J/m}^3 \pm 10 \; \text{J/m}^3$ in the primary, and $K=28 \; \text{J/m}^3 \pm 2 \; \text{J/m}^3$ in the secondary mode, previously unknown in bulk ferromagnets. Additionally, about 25 standing spin wave modes are observed inside a micron-sized FeGe wedge, measured at room temperature ($\sim \; 293$ K). These modes also exhibit unidirectional anisotropy

Microwave soft x-ray microscopy for nanoscale magnetization dynamics in the 5-10 GHz frequency range

We present a scanning transmission x-ray microscopy setup combined with a novel microwave synchronization scheme in order to study high frequency magnetization dynamics at synchrotron light sources. The sensitivity necessary to detect small changes of the magnetization on short time scales and nanometer spatial dimensions is achieved by combination of the developed excitation mechanism with a single photon counting electronics that is locked to the synchrotron operation frequency. The required mechanical stability is achieved by a compact design of the microscope. Our instrument is capable of creating direct images of dynamical phenomena in the 5-10 GHz range, with 35 nm resolution. When used together with circularly polarized x-rays, the above capabilities can be combined to study magnetic phenomena at microwave frequencies, such as ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) and spin waves. We demonstrate the capabilities of our technique by presenting phase resolved images of a 6 GHz nanoscale spin wave generated by a spin torque oscillator, as well as the uniform ferromagnetic precession with ~0.1 deg amplitude at 9 GHz in a micrometer-sized cobalt strip.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figure

Magnetocrystalline anisotropy and Gilbert damping in iron-rich Fe1−xSix thin films

The magnetocrystalline anisotropy of Fe1−xSix (0≤x≤0.4) epitaxial thin films on MgO(001) was studied by ferromagnetic resonance. The experimental results are in good agreement with theoretical predictions of ab initio electronic structure calculations using the fully relativistic Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker Green's function method within spin-density-functional theory. The Gilbert damping α is found to be isotropic by theory and experiment with a minimum at the composition x=0.2

Biologically encoded magnonics

International audienceSpin wave logic circuits using quantum oscillations of spins (magnons) as carriers of information have been proposed for next generation computing with reduced energy demands and the benefit of easy parallelization. Current realizations of magnonic devices have micrometer sized patterns. Here we demonstrate the feasibility of biogenic nanoparticle chains as the first step to truly nanoscale magnonics at room temperature. Our measurements on magnetosome chains (ca 12 magnetite crystals with 35 nm particle size each), combined with micromagnetic simulations, show that the topology of the magnon bands, namely anisotropy, band deformation, and band gaps are determined by local arrangement and orientation of particles, which in turn depends on the genotype of the bacteria. Our biomagnonic approach offers the exciting prospect of genetically engineering magnonic quantum states in nanoconfined geometries. By connecting mutants of magnetotactic bacteria with different arrangements of magnetite crystals, novel architectures for magnonic computing may be (self-) assembled

Spatially resolved GHz magnetization dynamics of a magnetite nano-particle chain inside a magnetotactic bacterium

Understanding magnonic properties of nonperiodic magnetic nanostructures requires real-space imaging of ferromagnetic resonance modes with spatial resolution well below the optical diffraction limit and sampling rates in the 5–100 GHz range. Here, we demonstrate element-specific scanning transmission x-ray microscopy-detected ferromagnetic resonance (STXM-FMR) applied to a chain of dipolarly coupled Fe3O4 nano-particles (40–50 nm particle size) inside a single cell of a magnetotactic bacterium Magnetospirillum magnetotacticum. The ferromagnetic resonance mode of the nano-particle chain driven at 6.748 GHz and probed with 50 nm x-ray focus size was found to have a uniform phase response but non-uniform amplitude response along the chain segments due to the superposition of dipolar coupled modes of chain segments and individual particles, in agreement with micromagnetic simulations

Structural, magnetic and electrical transport properties of non-conventionally prepared MAX phases V2AlC and (V/Mn)2AlC

A plethora of magnetic ground states along with intriguing magnetic properties have been reported in thin films of Mn-containing MAX phases. However, fewer results and therefore less knowledge in the area of bulk magnetic MAX phases exist resulting in many open research questions that still remain unanswered. Synthesis of high quality materials is key and is here achieved for bulk V2AlC and its Mn-doped analogs by means of microwave heating and spark plasma sintering. The obtained materials are carefully characterized by structural and microstructural investigations resulting in an average Mn-content of 2% corresponding to the mean chemical composition of (V0.96±0.02Mn0.04±0.02)2AlC in the Mn-doped V2AlC samples. While the parent MAX phase as well as the sample with the nominally lowest Mn-content are obtained essentially single-phase, samples with higher Mn-levels exhibit Mn-rich side phases. These are most likely responsible for the ferromagnetic behavior of the corresponding bulk materials. Besides, we show Pauli paramagnetism of the parent compound V2AlC and a combination of Pauli and Langevin paramagnetism in (V0.96±0.02Mn0.04±0.02)2AlC. For the latter, a magnetic moment of μM = 0.2(2) μB per M atom can be extracted

Evaluation protocol for revealing magnonic contrast in TR-STXM measurements

We present a statistically motivated method to extract magnonic contrast from time-resolved scanning transmission x-ray microscopy (TR-STXM) measurements. TR-STXM is an element-specific method for resolving spin-dynamics in space and time. It offers nanometer spatial resolution and picosecond temporal resolution. The presented method makes it possible to obtain phase and amplitude profiles of spin-waves from STXM measurements. Furthermore, it allows for a rigorous transformation to reciprocal magnon k⃗-space, revealing k⃗-dependent magnon properties such as the magnon dispersion in three dimensions and for all directions of the magnetic anisotropy. We demonstrate our method using X-band ferromagnetic resonance on a micrometer-sized permalloy assembly