Angle-dependent x-ray magnetic circular dichroism from (Ga,Mn)As: anisotropy and identification of hybridized states

Remarkably anisotropic Mn L2,3 x-ray magnetic circular dichroism spectra from the ferromagnetic semiconductor (Ga,Mn)As are reported. States with cubic and uniaxial symmetry are distinguished by careful analysis of the angle dependence of the spectra. The multiplet structures with cubic symmetry are qualitatively reproduced by calculations for an atomiclike d5 configuration in tetrahedral environment, and show zero anisotropy in the orbital and spin moments within the experimental uncertainty. However, hybridization with the host valence bands is reflected by the presence of a preedge feature with a uniaxial anisotropy and a marked dependence on the hole density.     

小尺寸正方形铁磁薄膜边界效应对磁化翻转过程的影响

用自旋动力学方法系统地研究磁偶极相互作用表现的边界效应对小尺寸正方形铁磁薄膜的磁化翻转过程的影响.在确定的磁偶极相互作用强度下,针对不同的单轴各向异性强度和不同的磁化角(外磁场与易轴间的夹角),具体给出矫顽场与磁化角及单轴各向异性强度之间的依赖关系和-些有代表性的磁滞回线,并给出磁化翻转过程中-些有代表性的微观磁结构.模拟结果表明:磁偶极相互作用表现的边界钉扎作用与单轴各向异性场之间的竞争决定磁滞回线的形状和矫顽场的大小,从而在不同磁化角情况下会导致不同的矫顽场机理.本文提出可有效地描述正方形铁磁性薄膜复杂微观磁畴结构的形成与演变的五磁畴模型.这种五磁畴模型既能直接揭示单轴各向异性正方形铁磁薄膜的几何特性和物理特性,也方便于磁化翻转过程的分析.     

Spin configurations in the absence of an external magnetic field in a magnetic bilayer with in-plane cubic or uniaxial anisotropies

The spin configurations in the absence of an external magnetic field have been systematically investigated for a magnetic bilayer system consisting of two ferromagnetic layers separated by a non-magnetic layer with interlayer exchange coupling. Based on a phenomenological model, the conditions for the existence of collinear and non-collinear spin structures were derived for three kinds of magnetic bilayers with different combinations of in-plane cubic and uniaxial anisotropies for the two ferromagnetic layers. The phase diagrams of the spin configurations at zero field were drawn, taking into account the lowest-order anisotropy parameters of both the ferromagnetic layers. The values of the canting angle have been derived analytically and then numerically plotted.     

外应力场下铁磁/反铁磁双层膜系统中的交换偏置

采用自由能极小的方法研究了铁磁/反铁磁双层膜系统在外应力场下的交换各向异性.本模型中铁磁层具有单轴磁晶各向异性和立方磁晶各向异性，而反铁磁层仅具有单轴磁晶各向异性，但其厚度趋于半无穷.理论上解析地给出了系统的等效交换偏置和钉扎角(它显示了反铁磁层对铁磁层磁化的钉扎作用)与外应力场之间的关系.数值计算表明：系统的等效交换偏置与外磁场的方向有关，而与其大小无关；然而外应力场的大小和方向均对系统的等效交换偏置有影响，其根源在于外应力场的大小和方向都影响着钉扎角. 关键词： 铁磁/反铁磁双层膜 交换偏置 钉扎角 应力场     

Anisotropy and dynamic properties of Co2MnGe Heusler thin films

Co₂MnGe films of 30 and 50 nm in thickness were grown by RF-sputtering. Their magnetic anisotropies, dynamic properties and the different excited spin wave modes have been studied using conventional ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) and Microstrip line FMR (MS-FMR). From the in-plane and the out-of-plane resonance field values, the effective magnetization (4πM_eff) and the g-factor are deduced. These values are then used to fit the in-plane angular-dependence of the uniform precession mode and the field-dependence of the resonance frequency of the uniform mode and the first perpendicular standing spin wave to determine the in-plane uniaxial, the four-fold anisotropy fields, the exchange stiffness constant and the magnetization at saturation. The samples exhibit a clear predominant four-fold magnetic anisotropy besides a smaller uniaxial anisotropy. This uniaxial anisotropy is most probably induced by the growth conditions.     

Ferromagnetic resonance in systems with competing uniaxial and cubic anisotropies

We develop a model for ferromagnetic resonance in systems with competing uniaxial and cubic anisotropies. This model applies to (i) magnetic materials with both uniaxial and cubic anisotropies, and (ii) magnetic nanoparticles with effective core and surface anisotropies; We numerically compute the resonance frequency as a function of the field and the resonance field as a function of the direction of the applied field for an arbitrary ratio of cubic-to-uniaxial anisotropy. We also provide some approximate analytical expressions in the case of weak cubic anisotropy. We propose a method that uses these expressions for estimating the uniaxial and cubic anisotropy constants, and for determining the relative orientation of the cubic anisotropy axes with respect to the crystal principle axes. This method is applicable to the analysis of experimental data of resonance type measurements for which we give a worked example of an iron thin film with mixed anisotropy.     

Magnetic excitations in ferromagnetic semiconductors

Magnetic excitations in a series of GaMnAs ferromagnetic semiconductor films were studied by ferromagnetic resonance (FMR). Using the FMR approach, multi-mode spin wave resonance spectra have been observed, whose analysis provides information on magnetic anisotropy (including surface anisotropy), distribution of magnetization precession within the GaMnAs film, dynamic surface spin pinning (derived from surface anisotropy), and the value of exchange stiffness constant D. These studies illustrate a combination of magnetism and semiconductor physics that is unique to magnetic semiconductors.     

In-plane anisotropy of tunneling magnetoresistance and spin polarization in lateral spin injection devices with (Ga,Mn)As/GaAs spin-Esaki diode contacts

We report here on in-plane anisotropy observed in the tunneling magnetoresistance of (Ga,Mn)As/n⁺-GaAs Esaki diode contacts and in the spin polarization generated in lateral all-semiconductor, all-electrical spin injection devices, employing such Esaki-diode structures as spin aligning contacts. The uniaxial component of the registered anisotropies, observed along [1 1 0] directions, does switch its sign as an effect of the applied bias, however the switching occurs at different bias values for magnetoresistance and for spin polarization cases.     

Tunable in-plane spin orientation in Fe/Si(557) film by step-induced competing magnetic anisotropies

Although the spin-reorientation transition from out-of-plane to in-plane in Fe/Si film is widely reported, the tuning of in-plane spin orientation is not yet well developed. Here, we report the thickness-, temperature- and Cu-adsorptioninduced in-plane spin-reorientation transition processes in Fe/Si(557) film, which can be attributed to the coexistence of two competing step-induced uniaxial magnetic anisotropies, i.e., surface magnetic anisotropy with magnetization easy axis perpendicular to the step and volume magnetic anisotropy with magnetization easy axis parallel to the step. For Fe film thickness smaller than 32 monolayer(ML), the magnitudes of two effects under various temperatures are extracted from the thickness dependence of uniaxial magnetic anisotropy. For Fe film thickness larger than 32 ML, the deviation of experimental results from fitting results is understood by the strain-relief-induced reduction of volume magnetic anisotropy.Additionally, the surface and volume magnetic anisotropies are both greatly reduced after covering Cu capping layer on Fe/Si(557) film while no significant influence of Na Cl capping layer on step-induced magnetic anisotropies is observed.The experimental results reported here provide various practical methods for manipulating in-plane spin orientation of Fe/Si films and improve the understanding of step-induced magnetic anisotropies.     

Development of magnetic anisotropies in ultrathin epitaxial films of Fe(001) and Ni(001)

Ultrathin films, bcc Fe(001) on Ag(001), fcc Fe(001) on Cu(001) and Fe/Ni(001) bilayers on Ag, were grown by molecular beam epitaxy. A wide range of surface science tools were employed to establish the quality of epitaxial growth. Ferromagnetic resonance and Brillouin light scattering were used to extract the magnetic properties. Emphasis was placed on the study of magnetic anisotropies. Large uniaxial anisotropies with easy axis perpendicular to the film surface were observed in all ultrathin structures studied. These anisotropies were particularly strong in fcc Fe and bcc Fe films. In sufficiently thin samples the saturation magnetization was oriented perpendicularly to the film surface in the absence of an applied field. It has been demonstrated that in bcc Fe films the uniaxial perpendicular anisotropy originates at the film interfaces. In situ measurements indentified the strength of the uniaxial perpendicular anisotropy constant at the Fe/vacuum, Fe/Ag and Fe/Au interfaces asK _us = 0.96, 0.63, and 0.3 ergs/cm² respectively. The surface anisotropies deduced for [bulk Fe/noble metal] interfaces are in good agreement with the values obtained from ultrathin films. Hence the perpendicular surface ansiotropies originate in the broken symmetry at abrupt interfaces. An observed decrease in the cubic anisotropy in bcc Fe ultrathin films has been explained by the presence of a weak 4th order in-plane surface anisotropy,K _1S=0.012 ergs/cm². Fe/Ni bilayers were also investigated. Ni grew in the pure bcc structure for the first 3–6 ML and then transformed to a new structure which exhibited unique magnetic properties. Transformed ultrathin bilayers possessed large inplane 4th order anisotropies far surpassing those observed in bulk Fe and Ni. The large 4th order anisotropies originate in crystallographic defects formed during the Ni lattice transformation.     

Width and temperature dependence of lithography-induced magnetic anisotropy in (Ga,Mn)As wires

In-plane magnetic anisotropy of 40-μm-long (Ga,Mn)As wires with different widths (0.4, 1.0, and 20 μm) has been investigated between 5 and 75 K by measuring anisotropic magneto-resistance (AMR). The wires show in-plane 〈1 0 0〉 cubic and [−1 1 0] uniaxial anisotropies, and an additional lithography-induced anisotropy along the wire direction in narrow wires with width of 0.4 and 1.0 μm. We derive the temperature dependence of the cubic, uniaxial, and lithography-induced anisotropy constants from the results of AMR, and find that a sizable anisotropy can be provided by lithographic means, which allows us to control and detect the magnetization reversal process by choosing the direction of the external magnetic fields.     

Mixed magnetic phases in (Ga,Mn)As epilayers

Two different ferromagnetic-paramagnetic transitions are detected in (Ga,Mn)As/GaAs(001) epilayers from ac susceptibility measurements: transition at a higher temperature results from (Ga,Mn)As cluster phases with [110] uniaxial anisotropy and that at a lower temperature is associated with a ferromagnetic (Ga,Mn)As matrix with 100 cubic anisotropy. A change in the magnetic easy axis from [100] to [110] with increasing temperature can be explained by the reduced contribution of 100 cubic anisotropy to the magnetic properties above the transition temperature of the (Ga,Mn)As matrix.     

Reconstruction control of magnetic properties during epitaxial growth of ferromagnetic Mn3-deltaGa on Wurtzite GaN(0001)

Binary ferromagnetic Mn(3-delta)Ga (1.2<3-delta< or =1.5) crystalline thin films have been epitaxially grown on wurtzite GaN(0001) surfaces using rf N-plasma molecular beam epitaxy. The film structure is face-centered tetragonal with CuAu type-I (L1(0)) ordering with (111) orientation. The in-plane epitaxial relationship to GaN is nearly ideal with [110](MnGa) parallel[1100](GaN) and [112](MnGa) parallel[1120](GaN). We observe magnetic anisotropy along both the in-plane and out-of-plane directions. The magnetic moments are found to depend on the Mn/(Mn+Ga) flux ratio and can be controlled by observation of the surface reconstruction during growth, which varies from 1x1 to 2x2 with increasing Mn stoichiometry.     

铁磁和反铁磁双层膜中铁磁共振的研究

采用微磁学理论研究了铁磁/反铁磁双层膜中的铁磁共振现象.本模型将铁磁薄层抽象为一个单晶,具有立方磁晶各向异性和单轴磁晶各向异性,而反铁磁层视为厚度趋近于半无穷,且只有单轴磁晶各向异性.推导出了该系统的铁磁共振频率和频率谱宽度的解析式.数值计算表明,铁磁共振模式分两支,取决于立方磁晶各向异性.而界面的交换耦合,是磁易轴具有单向性的起因.     

Magnetic anisotropy and magnetization reversal of ultrathin iron films with in-plane magnetization on Si（111） substrates

The magnetic anisotropy and magnetization reversal of single crystal Fe films with thickness of 45 monolayer (ML) grown on Si(111) have been investigated by ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). Owing to the significant modification of the energy surface in remanent state by slight misorientation from (111) plane and a uniaxial magnetic anisotropy, the azimuthal angular dependence of in-plane resonance field shows a six-fold symmetry with a weak uniaxial contribution, while the remanence of hysteresis loops displays a two-fold one. The competition between the first and second magnetocrystalline anisotropies may result in the switching of in-plane easy axis of the system. Combining the FMR and VSM measurements, the magnetization reversal mechanism has also been determined.     

外应力场下铁磁/反铁磁双层膜系统中的自旋波

采用自由能极小的方法研究了铁磁/反铁磁双层膜系统在外应力场下的一致进动自旋波性质，即铁磁共振现象. 本模型中铁磁层很薄可看成单畴结构，但具有单轴磁晶各向异性和立方磁晶各向异性；而反铁磁层仅具有单轴磁晶各向异性，但其厚度趋于半无穷. 推导出了该系统的铁磁共振频率和频谱宽度的解析式. 结果表明，外应力场和界面交换耦合或反铁磁磁强度仅在弱磁场下对系统的铁磁共振有影响，且系统的铁磁共振行为按磁场强度可分为两支，其区分弱磁场和强磁场的临界场依赖于外应力场的方向. 另一方面，应力场方向的改变可借助于反铁磁层磁畴变化对铁磁层磁晶各向异性轴有影响. 关键词： 铁磁/反铁磁双层膜 界面耦合强度 铁磁共振 应力场     

Ferromagnetic resonance study of interface anisotropies in exchange-biased Fe(0 0 1)/KNiF3 bilayers

Magnetic anisotropies at epitaxial Fe/KNiF₃ interfaces were probed by ferromagnetic resonance. Fe(0 0 1) films coupled to single crystal KNiF₃ exhibit four-fold in-plane anisotropy and a unidirectional bias upon field-cooling. In Fe(0 0 1) with polycrystalline KNiF₃, the bias direction deviates from the field-cooling direction. Lattice mismatch strain due to polycrystalline KNiF₃ also induces uniaxial anisotropy in Fe.     

Domain walls in the (Ga,Mn)as diluted magnetic semiconductor

We report experimental and theoretical studies of magnetic domain walls in an in-plane magnetized (Ga,Mn)As dilute moment ferromagnetic semiconductor. Our high-resolution electron holography technique provides direct images of domain wall magnetization profiles. The experiments are interpreted based on microscopic calculations of the micromagnetic parameters and Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert simulations. We find that the competition of uniaxial and biaxial magnetocrystalline anisotropies in the film is directly reflected in orientation dependent wall widths, ranging from approximately 40 to 120 nm. The domain walls are of the Néel type and evolve from near-90 degrees walls at low temperatures to large angle [11[over ]0]-oriented walls and small angle [110]-oriented walls at higher temperatures.     

Magnetostatic spin waves in (111)-oriented thin garnet films with combined cubic and uniaxial anisotropies

The magnetostatic spin wave theory in (111)-oriented ferromagnetic films characterized by cubic and uniaxial anisotropies (CUA) is developed. The theory is discussed for two cases when the magnetization vector is perpendicular or parallel to the sample plane. In CUA films, instead of the usually discussed magnetostatic surface waves known for the isotropic case, a new type of surface waves was found with the complex wavevector component normal to the surface.It is shown that for the pure yttrium-iron-garnet film the influence of the CUA effects on the dispersion characteristics of the surface waves is not very substantial.