| 1. |
- Magnus, Fridrik, et al.
(author)
-
Giant magnetic domains in amorphous SmCo thin films
- 2014
-
In: Physical Review B. Condensed Matter and Materials Physics. - 1098-0121 .- 1550-235X. ; 89:22, s. 224420-1-224420-5
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The potential for tuning of magnetic properties and the exceptional uniformity are among the features that make amorphous magnetic materials attractive for technology. Here it is shown that the magnetization reversal in amorphous SmCo thin films takes place through the formation of giant magnetic domains, over a centimeter across. The domain structure is found to be dictated by the direction of the imprinted in-plane easy axis and the film boundaries. This is a consequence of the size of the anisotropy and the structural uniformity of the films, which also allows the movement of millimeter-long domain walls over distances of several millimeters. The results demonstrate the possibility of tailoring the magnetic domain structure in amorphous magnets over a wide range of length scales, up to centimeters. Moreover, they highlight an important consequence of the structural perfection of amorphous films.
|
|
| 2. |
- Schäfer, Rudolf, et al.
(author)
-
Analyzer-free, intensity-based, wide-field magneto-optical microscopy
- 2021
-
In: Applied Physics Reviews. - : American Institute of Physics (AIP). - 1931-9401. ; 8:3
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In conventional Kerr and Faraday microscopy, the sample is illuminated with plane-polarized light, and a magnetic domain contrast is generated by an analyzer making use of the Kerr or Faraday rotation. Here, we demonstrate possibilities of analyzer-free magneto-optical microscopy based on magnetization-dependent intensity modulations of the light. (i) The transverse Kerr effect can be applied for in-plane magnetized material, as demonstrated for an FeSi sheet. (ii) Illuminating that sample with circularly polarized light leads to a domain contrast with a different symmetry from the conventional Kerr contrast. (iii) Circular polarization can also be used for perpendicularly magnetized material, as demonstrated for garnet and ultrathin CoFeB films. (iv) Plane-polarized light at a specific angle can be employed for both in-plane and perpendicular media. (v) Perpendicular light incidence leads to a domain contrast on in-plane materials that is quadratic in the magnetization and to a domain boundary contrast. (vi) Domain contrast can even be obtained without a polarizer. In cases (ii) and (iii), the contrast is generated by magnetic circular dichroism (i.e., differential absorption of left- and right-circularly polarized light induced by magnetization components along the direction of light propagation), while magnetic linear dichroism (differential absorption of linearly polarized light induced by magnetization components transverse to propagation) is responsible for the contrast in case (v). The domain-boundary contrast is due to the magneto-optical gradient effect. A domain-boundary contrast can also arise by interference of phase-shifted magneto-optical amplitudes. An explanation of these contrast phenomena is provided in terms of Maxwell-Fresnel theory.
|
|
| 3. |
- Soroka, Inna, 1966-
(author)
-
Magnetic Heterostructures : The Effect of Compositional Modulation on Magnetic Properties
- 2005
-
Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The effect of compositional modulation on structural and magnetic properties of magnetic heterostructures was explored. The systems under focus were ferromagnetic superlattices Fe81Ni19/Co, metal-insulator multilayers Al2O3/Ni81Fe19, nanoparticles and artificial multilayered pillars. The heterostuctures were grown by magnetron sputtering in a state-of-the-art ultra-high vacuum system. The structural characterization was done by X-ray diffraction and reflectivity, as well as by transmission electron microscopy. Magneto-optical Kerr effect, SQUID and XMCD magnetometry and magnetic force microscopy were used for magnetic characterization. The bilayer thickness, ratio of the constituents and the interface quality influence the magnetic properties (magnetic moments and anisotropy) of metallic heterostructures. In particular, magnetic moments in bcc Fe81Ni19/Co superlattices were found to scale with the interface density thus, implying different magnetic moments at the interfaces as compared to the interior part of the layers. The easy direction of magnetization can be rotated from in-plane to out-of-plane, by increasing the bilayer thicknesses, keeping other parameters unchanged. Consequently, the anisotropy strength is strongly dependent on the repeat distance. Stripe domains appear in the films that possess an out-of-plane magnetization. The average domain period was found to be dependent on the applied in-plane magnetic field and on the total thickness of the films. The structural and magnetic properties of Al2O3/Ni81Fe19 multilayers depend strongly on the individual layers thicknesses. By increasing the amount of the magnetic deposits one can change the obtained film structure, from superparamagnetic nanoparticles to ferromagnetic multilayers. By increasing the oxide layer thickness the magnetic behavior of the nanoparticles can be altered from ferromagnetic, via spin glass like, to a superparamagnetic character.
|
|
