| 1. |
- Engel, Robin Y., et al.
(författare)
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Parallel Broadband Femtosecond Reflection Spectroscopy at a Soft X-Ray Free-Electron Laser
- 2020
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Ingår i: Applied Sciences. - : MDPI. - 2076-3417. ; 10:19
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Featured Application Exploiting the full flux and temporal resolution of SASE-FELs for highly sensitive X-ray absorption measurements. X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and the directly linked X-ray reflectivity near absorption edges yield a wealth of specific information on the electronic structure around the resonantly addressed element. Observing the dynamic response of complex materials to optical excitations in pump-probe experiments requires high sensitivity to small changes in the spectra which in turn necessitates the brilliance of free electron laser (FEL) pulses. However, due to the fluctuating spectral content of pulses generated by self-amplified spontaneous emission (SASE), FEL experiments often struggle to reach the full sensitivity and time-resolution that FELs can in principle enable. Here, we implement a setup which solves two common challenges in this type of spectroscopy using FELs: First, we achieve a high spectral resolution by using a spectrometer downstream of the sample instead of a monochromator upstream of the sample. Thus, the full FEL bandwidth contributes to the measurement at the same time, and the FEL pulse duration is not elongated by a monochromator. Second, the FEL beam is divided into identical copies by a transmission grating beam splitter so that two spectra from separate spots on the sample (or from the sample and known reference) can be recorded in-parallel with the same spectrometer, enabling a spectrally resolved intensity normalization of pulse fluctuations in pump-probe scenarios. We analyze the capabilities of this setup around the oxygen K- and nickel L-edges recorded with third harmonic radiation of the free electron laser in Hamburg (FLASH), demonstrating the capability for pump-probe measurements with sensitivity to reflectivity changes on the per mill level.
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| 2. |
- Hudl, Matthias, et al.
(författare)
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Nonlinear Magnetization Dynamics Driven by Strong Terahertz Fields
- 2019
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Ingår i: Physical Review Letters. - : AMER PHYSICAL SOC. - 0031-9007 .- 1079-7114. ; 123:19
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present a comprehensive experimental and numerical study of magnetization dynamics in a thin metallic film triggered by single-cycle terahertz pulses of ∼20 MV/m electric field amplitude and ∼1 ps duration. The experimental dynamics is probed using the femtosecond magneto-optical Kerr effect, and it is reproduced numerically using macrospin simulations. The magnetization dynamics can be decomposed in three distinct processes: a coherent precession of the magnetization around the terahertz magnetic field, an ultrafast demagnetization that suddenly changes the anisotropy of the film, and a uniform precession around the equilibrium effective field that is relaxed on the nanosecond time scale, consistent with a Gilbert damping process. Macrospin simulations quantitatively reproduce the observed dynamics, and allow us to predict that novel nonlinear magnetization dynamics regimes can be attained with existing tabletop terahertz sources.
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| 3. |
- Krieger, Jonas A., et al.
(författare)
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Weyl spin-momentum locking in a chiral topological semimetal
- 2024
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Ingår i: Nature Communications. - 2041-1723. ; 15:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Spin-orbit coupling in noncentrosymmetric crystals leads to spin-momentum locking – a directional relationship between an electron’s spin angular momentum and its linear momentum. Isotropic orthogonal Rashba spin-momentum locking has been studied for decades, while its counterpart, isotropic parallel Weyl spin-momentum locking has remained elusive in experiments. Theory predicts that Weyl spin-momentum locking can only be realized in structurally chiral cubic crystals in the vicinity of Kramers-Weyl or multifold fermions. Here, we use spin- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to evidence Weyl spin-momentum locking of multifold fermions in the chiral topological semimetal PtGa. We find that the electron spin of the Fermi arc surface states is orthogonal to their Fermi surface contour for momenta close to the projection of the bulk multifold fermion at the Γ point, which is consistent with Weyl spin-momentum locking of the latter. The direct measurement of the bulk spin texture of the multifold fermion at the R point also displays Weyl spin-momentum locking. The discovery of Weyl spin-momentum locking may lead to energy-efficient memory devices and Josephson diodes based on chiral topological semimetals.
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| 4. |
- Liu, R. S., et al.
(författare)
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CoFe alloy as middle layer for strong spin dependent quantum well resonant tunneling in MgO double barrier magnetic tunnel junctions
- 2013
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Ingår i: Physical Review B. Condensed Matter and Materials Physics. - 1098-0121 .- 1550-235X. ; 87:2, s. 024411-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on spin dependent quantum well (QW) resonances in the CoFe alloy middle layer of CoFe/MgO/CoFe/MgO/CoFeB double barrier magnetic tunnel junctions. The dI/dV spectra reveal clear resonant peaks for the parallel magnetization configurations, which can be related to the existence of QW resonances obtained from first-principles calculations. We observe that the differential tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) exhibits an oscillatory behavior as a function of voltage with a sign change as well as a pronounced TMR enhancement at resonant voltages at room temperature. The observation of strong QW resonances indicates that the CoFe film possesses a long majority spin mean-free path, and the substitutional disorder does not cause a significant increase of scattering. Both points are confirmed by first-principles electronic structure calculation. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevB.87.024411
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| 5. |
- Wang, Xiaocui, et al.
(författare)
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Ultrafast manipulation of the NiO antiferromagnetic order via sub-gap optical excitation
- 2022
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Ingår i: Faraday discussions. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 1359-6640 .- 1364-5498. ; 237:0, s. 300-316
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Wide-band-gap insulators such as NiO offer the exciting prospect of coherently manipulating electronic correlations with strong optical fields. Contrary to metals where rapid dephasing of optical excitation via electronic processes occurs, the sub-gap excitation in charge-transfer insulators has been shown to couple to low-energy bosonic excitations. However, it is currently unknown if the bosonic dressing field is composed of phonons or magnons. Here we use the prototypical charge-transfer insulator NiO to demonstrate that 1.5 eV sub-gap optical excitation leads to a renormalised NiO band-gap in combination with a significant reduction of the antiferromagnetic order. We employ element-specific X-ray reflectivity at the FLASH free-electron laser to demonstrate the reduction of the upper band-edge at the O 1s-2p core-valence resonance (K-edge) whereas the antiferromagnetic order is probed via X-ray magnetic linear dichroism (XMLD) at the Ni 2p-3d resonance (L-2-edge). Comparing the transient XMLD spectral line shape to ground-state measurements allows us to extract a spin temperature rise of 65 +/- 5 K for time delays longer than 400 fs while at earlier times a non-equilibrium spin state is formed. We identify transient mid-gap states being formed during the first 200 fs accompanied by a band-gap reduction lasting at least up to the maximum measured time delay of 2.4 ps. Electronic structure calculations indicate that magnon excitations significantly contribute to the reduction of the NiO band gap.
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| 6. |
- Warnatz, Tobias
(författare)
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Magnetic Properties of Epitaxial Metal/Oxide Heterostructures
- 2021
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The work in this dissertation is devoted to tailoring and studying magnetic properties of epitaxial metal/oxide heterostructures. The aim is to understand the fundamental principles governing these properties and how they affect each other. The acquired knowledge can prove useful for the development of future spintronic devices. A variety of experimental techniques is used to fabricate and characterize the epitaxial structures. For fabrication, a combination of direct-current and radio-frequency sputtering is used, whereas x-ray reflectivity and diffraction measurements are the main tools for the structural characterization of the heterostructures. The magnetic characterization of these structures is done by a combination of longitudinal magneto-optical Kerr-effect measurements, Kerr-microscopy and polarized neutron reflectometry. First, it is shown how strain affects the magnetic properties of metal/oxide heterostructures by comparing Fe/MgO and Fe/MgAl2O4 superlattices. Subsequently, an antiferromagnetic interlayer exchange coupling in Fe/MgO superlattices is revealed and attributed to a spin-polarized-tunneling mechanism. The coupling strength can be tuned by changing the MgO thickness leading to the stabilization of different remanent states as well as to different reversal mechanisms. It is shown that the interlayer exchange coupling in Fe/MgO superlattices is a consequence of two distinct components. These components can be interpreted as beyond-nearest-neighbor interactions and a contribution arising from the total thickness of the heterostructures.The interlayer exchange coupling is further investigated via temperature dependent magnetization measurements. It is shown that different remanent states and reversal mechanisms occur at different temperatures. Furthermore, a large increase in interlayer exchange coupling strength with reduced temperature is revealed. Finally, it is shown that Fe84Cu16/MgO superlattices exhibit a reduced magnetocrystalline anisotropy and interlayer exchange coupling strength, as compared to pure Fe/MgO superlattices. Patterning such Fe84Cu16/MgO superlattices in circular islands leads to an increased saturation field with decreasing island diameter.
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