Weakly coupled synthetic antiferromagnetic nanodisks with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy for lab-on-chip devices

Synthetic antiferromagnetic particles with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy offer a highly desirable platform for use in fluidic applications. This work illustrates their high level of switching field tunability and demonstrates the ability to use particle design to overcome unfavorable hysteretic changes during patterning to manufacture functional, low switching field nanodisks. This makes them ideal candidates for lab-on-chip technologies such as microfluidic sorting or detection devices.Rosetrees Trus

Vertical shift register using dipolar interaction in magnetic multilayers

A vertical shift register consisting of multi-layered ferromagnetic bars with in-plane magnetization is investigated numerically using macrospin simulations. These layers are anti-ferromagnetically coupled via dipolar interactions and their in-plane aspect ratio determines their anisotropy. A single data bit is represented by a magnetic kink soliton, which forms at the boundary of two anti-parallel domains with opposite phases. It can be propagated bi-directionally using an externally applied rotating magnetic field. The soliton propagation is dependent on the applied field strength, the magnetic anisotropy of the ferromagnetic layers, and the dipolar coupling energies. For the device investigated here, the largest field range for soliton propagation is found to be from 35 Oe to 235 Oe at a lateral aspect ratio of 1.33. The soliton is also subjected to edge effects where it can be either pinned or reflected rather than being expelled from the stack. It is found that by reducing the thickness of the edge layer, these effects can be reduced substantially. By reducing the thickness of the edge layer by 20%, the field range in which the soliton is expelled increases by more than a factor of two.This project has received funding from the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement no. 309589 (M3d), as well as the Seventh Framework Programme ERC Contract No. 247368 (3SPIN). AFP acknowledges funding from an EPSRC Early Career Fellowship, EP/M008517/1 and from the Winton Foundation.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from AIP via http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.493791

Two-dimensional control of field-driven magnetic bubble movement using Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions

The field-induced asymmetric growth of magnetic bubble domains in Pt/Co/Pt out-of-plane magnetized films with Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interactions (DMI) is used to control the lateral displacement of bubbles. We demonstrate experimentally that we can laterally translate bubbles away from their nucleation site by applying a series of alternating 3-dimensional field pulses with a controlled relative sign between the out-of-plane and in-plane components. Using magneto optical Kerr effect imaging, the domain wall velocity as a function of applied field strength was measured from which the magnitude of the DMI field was estimated.This work was supported by the European Community under the Seventh Framework Programme '3SPIN' (ERC contract 247368) and by EMRP JRP EXL04 SpinCal. The EMRP is jointly funded by the EMRP participating countries within EURAMET and the EU.This is the accepted manuscript. The final version is available from AIP at http://scitation.aip.org/content/aip/journal/apl/106/2/10.1063/1.4905600

Resonance in Magnetostatically Coupled Transverse Domain Walls

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from American Physical Society via the DOI in this record.We have observed the eigenmodes of coupled transverse domain walls in a pair of ferromagnetic nanowires. Although the pair is coupled magnetostatically, its spectrum is determined by a combination of pinning by edge roughness and dipolar coupling of the two walls. Because the corresponding energy scales are comparable, the coupling can be observed only at the smallest wire separations. A model of the coupled wall dynamics reproduces the experiment quantitatively, allowing for comparisons with the estimated pinning and domain wall coupling energies. The results have significant implications for the dynamics of devices based on coupled domain walls.This work was supported in part by the NSF MRSEC program under Grant No. DMR-0804244 and the NSF/NRI NEB program under Grant No. ECCS-1124831, as well as the EU Marie Curie IOF Project No. 299376 and the European Community Seventh Framework Programme Contract No. 247368: 3SPIN. Parts of this work were carried out in the Characterization Facility, University of Minnesota, which receives partial support from NSF through the MRSEC program

High-yield fabrication of perpendicularly magnetised synthetic antiferromagnetic nanodiscs

AbstractSynthetic antiferromagnetic (SAF) particles with perpendicular anisotropy display a number of desirable characteristics for applications in biological and other fluid environments. We present an efficient and effective method for the patterning of ultrathin Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yoshida coupled, perpendicularly magnetised SAFs using a combination of nanosphere lithography and ion milling. A Ge sacrificial layer is utilised, which provides a clean and simple lift-off process, as well as maintaining the key magnetic properties that are beneficial to target applications. We demonstrate that the method is capable of producing a particularly high yield of well-defined, thin film based nanoparticles.European Research Council (No.779822

Time-resolved Kerr microscopy of coupled transverse domain walls in a pair of curved nanowires

This is the final version of the article. Available from the American Institute of Physics via the DOI in this record.Time-resolved scanning Kerr microscopy has been used to directly observe magnetostatically coupled transverse domain walls (TDWs) in a pair of closely spaced, curved nanowires (NWs). Kerr images of the precessional response of the magnetic domain to either side of the TDW revealed the TDW as a minimum in the Kerr signal in the region of closest NW separation. When the TDWs were ejected from the NW pair, the minimum in the Kerr signal was no longer observed. By imaging this transition, the static de-coupling field was estimated to be in the range from 38 to 48 Oe in good agreement with a simple micromagnetic model. This work provides a novel technique by which DC and microwave assisted decoupling fields of TDWs may be explored in NW pairs of different width, separation, and curvature.This work was supported by the EU Grant Master No. NMP-FP7-212257, the UK EPSRC Grant Ref. EP/I038470/1, and partially supported by the EU FP7 Project 3SPIN No. 247368, and the Marie Curie IOF Project No. 299376

Dynamic selective switching in antiferromagnetically-coupled bilayers close to the spin reorientation transition

We have designed a bilayer synthetic antiferromagnet where the order of layer reversal can be selected by varying the sweep rate of the applied magnetic field. The system is formed by two ultra-thin ferromagnetic layers with different proximities to the spin reorientation transition, coupled antiferromagnetically using Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida interactions. The different dynamic magnetic reversal behavior of both layers produces a crossover in their switching fields for field rates in the kOe/s range. This effect is due to the different effective anisotropy of both layers, added to an appropriate asymmetric antiferromagnetic coupling between them. Field-rate controlled selective switching of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy layers as shown here can be exploited in sensing and memory applications.Copyright (2014) American Institute of Physics. This article may be downloaded for personal use only. Any other use requires prior permission of the author and the American Institute of Physics. The following article appeared in Applied Physics Letters (volume 105: 092408) and may be found at http://scitation.aip.org/content/aip/journal/apl/105/9/10.1063/1.4895032

Controlling domain wall nucleation and injection through focussed ion beam irradiation in perpendicularly magnetized nanowires

Using Ga$^{+}$ focussed ion beam irradiation of Ta/Pt/CoFeB/Pt perpendicularly magnetized nanowires, the nucleation and injection fields of domain walls into the nanowires is controlled. The nucleation and injection fields can be varied as a function of dose, however, the range of injection fields is found to be limited by the creation of a step in anisotropy between the irradiated and unirradiated regions. This can be altered by defocussing the beam, which allows the injection fields to be further reduced. The ability to define an arbitrary dose profile allows domain walls to be injected at different fields either side of an asymmetrically irradiated area, which could form the initial stage of a logic device. The effect of the thickness of the magnetic layer and the thickness of a Ta underlayer on the dose required to remove the perpendicular anisotropy is also studied and is seen that for similar Ta underlayers the dose is determined by the thickness of the magnetic layer rather than its anisotropy. This finding is supported by some transport of ions in matter simulations.This research was funded by the European Community under the Seventh Framework Program ERC Contract No. 247368: 3SPIN, and by EMRP JRP EXL04 SpinCal. The EMRP is jointly funded by the EMRP participating countries within EURAMET and the EU. AB acknowledges DTA funding from the EPSRC

A robust soliton ratchet using combined antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic interlayer couplings

A sharp magnetic soliton can be created and propagated in a vertical ratchet structure based on magnetic layers with out-of-plane anisotropy using a combination of antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic interlayer couplings. This allows the use of identical magnetic layers in the stack, which simplifies the implementation of the ratchet compared to schemes which use alternating layer thicknesses. The ratchet behavior is analyzed using an Ising-macrospin approximation and conditions are derived for the propagation of a soliton, which is demonstrated experimentally. Values extracted from the experimental data for the coercivities and interlayer couplings show significant variation, which demonstrates the robustness of the soliton propagation.This research was funded by the European Community under the Seventh Framework Program ERC Contract No. 247368: 3SPIN. R.L. acknowledges support from the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (VENI 68047428). A.F.-P. acknowledges an EPSRC Early Career fellowship and support from the Winton Programme for the Physics of Sustainability.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from AIP via http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.491401