Interpretation of magnetisation dynamics using inductive magnetometry in thin films

We present ferromagnetic resonance data from a Py film using both a pulsed inductive microwave magnetometer (PIMM) and conventional FMR. An increase in the damping is seen at low field resonances in the PIMM data from what is expected using conventional FMR. This is explained by the influence of the PIMM’s spatially inhomogeneous excitation field and quantified using an intuitive argument. We demonstrate from this derivation how excitation of non-uniform wavevectors can explain the measured increase in damping at low fields observed by the PIMM. We also present results from a coupled Py and Cobalt system, demonstrating that inductive magnetometry can be a sensitive technique for measuring exchange coupling over interfaces and surfaces.     

SNR improvement by intergranular exchange coupling in CGC perpendicular magnetic recording media

Effect of intergranular exchange coupling in coupled granular and continuous (CGC) perpendicular media was investigated in terms of improvement of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The exchange coupling improves SNR and byte error rate (BER); however, it tended to widen the magnetic track width (MWW) of a track. That degradation is of concern for the CGC media. This paper discusses intergranular exchange coupling in CGC media to optimize track density and linear density to achieve high areal density.     

Magnetoresistance of porous polycrystalline HTSC: Effect of the transport current on magnetic flux compression in intergranular medium

The hysteretic dependences of the magnetoresistance of porous (38% of the theoretical density) granular high-temperature superconductor (HTSC) Bi_1.8Pb_0.3Sr_1.9Ca₂Cu₃O _x have been analyzed in the model of the effective intergranular field. This effective field has been defined by the superposition of the external field and the field induced by magnetic moments of superconducting grains. The magnetic flux compression in an intergranular medium, characterized by the effective field, controls the hysteretic behavior of the magnetoresistance. It has been found that the magnetoresistance hysteresis width for the studied porous HTSC depends on the transport current, in contrast to the superconductor of the same composition with high physical density (more than 90% of the theoretical value). For a porous superconductor, a significant current concentration occurs in the region of the grain boundaries, which is caused by features of its microstructure. A current-induced increase in the effective boundary length results in a decrease in the flux compression, a decrease in the effective field in the intergranular medium, and a magnetoresistance hysteresis narrowing with increasing current.     

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.     

Magnetic dynamics of two-dimensional itinerant ferromagnet Fe_3GeTe_2

Among the layered two-dimensional ferromagnetic materials(2 D FMs),due to a relatively high T_C,the van der Waals(vdW) Fe_3 GeTe_2(FGT) crystal is of great importance for investigating its distinct magnetic properties.Here,we have carried out static and dynamic magnetization measurements of the FGT crystal with a Curie temperature TC ≈ 204 K.The M-H hysteresis loops with in-plane and out-of-plane orientations show that FGT has a strong perpendicular magnetic anisotropy with the easy axis along its c-axis.Moreover,we have calculated the uniaxial magnetic anisotropy constant(K_1)from the SQUID measurements.The dynamic magnetic properties of FGT have been probed by utilizing the high sensitivity electron-spin-resonance(ESR) spectrometer at cryogenic temperatures.Based on an approximation of single magnetic domain mode,the K_1 and the effective damping constant(α_(eff)) have also been determined from the out-of-plane angular dependence of ferromagnetic resonance(FMR) spectra obtained at the temperature range of 185 K to T_C.We have found large magnetic damping with the effective damping constant α_(eff) ～ 0.58 along with a broad linewidth(ΔH_(pp) 1000 Oe at 9.48 GHz,H ‖ c-axis).Our results provide useful dynamics information for the development of FGT-based spintronic devices.     

The study of exchange coupling in NiFe/Cu/IrMn trilayer structures by MOKE and FMR measurements

The exchange coupling strength of NiFe/Cu/IrMn trilayer films was examined with both a new magneto optical Kerr effect (MOKE) method developed for the exchange coupling field determination and ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) measurements. We found that the value for exchange coupling field obtained by the MOKE technique coincided with FMR result with high accuracy. Other peculiarities of FMR measurements due to interlayer exchange coupling such as angular dependence of resonance field on Cu spacer thickness are also shown in the article.     

Garnet films for micron and submicron magnetic bubbles with low damping constants

Two types of films for small bubbles have been grown without making use of the rare earth ions which are the cause of increased damping of the Bloch wall motion in the usual small bubble film compositions. Firstly, Bi-containing films were grown on (111) orientated GGG for 1 μm bubbles and secondly, Mn³⁺-containing films were grown under compression on (100) orientated GGG substrates for 0.4 μm bubbles. The damping constants in these films have been obtained by measuring the FMR line width. The correlation between the damping of the FMR and of the Bloch wall motion is determined in films with bubble diameters of, 2 to 4 μm. The damping constants are a factor 10 to 100 smaller than in the existing device films for small bubbles.     

Temperature dependence of ferromagnetic resonance in permalloy/NiO exchange-biased films

The temperature dependencies of the ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) linewidth and the resonance field-shift have been investigated for NiO/NiFe exchange-biased bilayers from 78 K to 450 K. A broad maximum in the linewidth of 500 Oe, solely due to the exchange-bias, is observed at ≈150 K when the magnetic field is applied along the film plane. When the magnetic field is applied perpendicular to the film plane, the maximum in the linewidth is less pronounced and amounts to 100 Oe at the same temperature. Such a behavior of the FMR linewidth is accompanied with a monotonic increase in the negative resonance field-shift with decreasing temperature. Our results are compared with the previous experimental FMR and Brillouin light scattering data for various ferromagnetic/antiferromagnetic (FM/AF) structures, and suggest that spin dynamics (spin-wave damping and anomalous resonance field-shift) in the FM/AF structures can be described in a consistent way by a single mechanism of the so-called slow-relaxation.     

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.     

Giant magnetoresistance of granular microwires: Spin-dependent scattering in integranular spacers

The anomalous behavior of magnetoresistance has been revealed in a number of granular microwires. In contrast to the giant magnetoresistance of granular alloys, which is associated with the spin-dependent scattering in the bulk of grains and at their surface, is linear in the square of the magnetization, and decreases with an increase in temperature, the magnetoresistance, for example, in Co₁₀Cu₉₀ microwires is negative, increases with an increase in temperature below the Curie temperature, and does not reach saturation in the field dependence in the high-field range. A simple mechanism of negative giant magnetoresistance due to scattering of spin-polarized charge carriers by impurity magnetic moments localized in the nonmagnetic intergranular spacers has been proposed taking into account that a considerable part of magnetic ions in microwires exhibiting this behavior is dissolved in the intergranular spacers. It has been shown that the corresponding contribution to magnetoresistance can reach 10–20%.     

Ferromagnetic resonance and magnetic microstructure in nanocomposite films of Cox(SiO2)1 ? x and (CoFeB)x(SiO2)1 ? x

This paper reports on the results of the investigation of the relation between the magnetic microstructure and ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) in ferromagnetic metal-insulator composites by using granular alloys (Co₄₁Fe₃₉B₂₀) _x (SiO₂)_{1 − x} and Co _x (SiO₂)_{1 − x} as an example. A comparative analysis of the properties of FMR spectra and parameters of random magnetic anisotropy leads to correlations between these quantities. It has been found that the main mechanism that determines the FMR line width in the films under investigation is the exchange narrowing mechanism.     

Ferromagnetic resonance linewidth in CoNi/FeMn bilayers

Out-of-plane ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) spectra of sputtered Co₄₀Ni₆₀/FeMn bilayers with various CoNi layer thicknesses were measured and analyzed by the Landau–Lifshitz–Gilbert equation. With increasing CoNi layer thickness, the effective demagnetizing field increases and the Landé g factor decreases. At the same time, the peak-to-peak linewidth H_pp in the parallel and perpendicular configurations decreases. The angular dependence of the FMR linewidth can be described very well by the intrinsic Gilbert damping effect and the magnetic inhomogeneity. The Gilbert damping G factor is inversely proportional to the CoNi layer thickness and proportional to (g-2)² with the variation of the CoNi layer thickness. PACS 75.70.-i; 76.50.+g; 75.30.Gw     

Angular dependence of the ferromagnetic resonance spectrum in continuous/heterogeneous multilayers

We present here a study of the angular dependence of the ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) spectra in trilayers formed by two continuous ferromagnetic layers, Fe and Ni₈₀Fe₂₀ (permalloy), separated by a granular film of Fe(x)–SiO₂(1–x). The study of the Fe/Fe-SiO₂/Ni₈₀Fe₂₀ trilayer was made for an Fe volume concentration x=0.75 and two thicknesses (t=1 and 18 nm) of the granular layer. One microwave absorption line is in general found close to the field expected for Fe, while the other is coincident with the resonance field of permalloy. However, the Fe-like absorption is considerably wider than what is usually observed in pure Fe films, which suggests the presence of a strong exchange interaction between this layer and the granular spacer. The angular dependence of the resonance field and the line width could be very well fitted with a model that assumes an effective in-plane anisotropy for each layer, indicating that the shape anisotropy dominates the angular response of both modes. When the excitation frequency is increased, the line width of the permalloy-like mode increases by a similar factor. The width of the Fe-like mode is very similar at different frequencies because of the effect of the granular layer.     

应力场对多层膜Permalloy/Cu/Co/NiO铁磁共振性质影响的理论研究

采用能量极小原理研究了Permalloy(Py)/Cu/Co/Ni O多层膜结构中层间耦合强度和应力各向异性场对薄膜共振频率的影响,得到共振频率随外磁场强度变化关系式.结果发现外应力场强度和方向对系统共振频率的影响在本文中要强于层间耦合强度和交换各向异性场,外应力场方向对光学模共振频率的影响强于声学模,而外应力场强度对声学模共振频率的影响强于光学模.     

应力场对多层膜Permalloy/Cu/Co/NiO铁磁共振性质影响的理论研究

采用能量极小原理研究了Permalloy(Py)/Cu/Co/NiO多层膜结构中层间耦合强度和应力各向异性场对薄膜共振频率的影响,得到共振频率随外磁场强度变化关系式．结果发现外应力场强度和方向对系统共振频率的影响在本文中要强于层间耦合强度和交换各向异性场．外应力场方向对光学模共振频率的影响强于声学模,而外应力场强度对声学模共振频率的影响强于光学模．     

Ferromagnetic resonance study of sputtered Co|Ni multilayers

We report on room temperature ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) studies of [ t Co|2t Ni]  × N sputtered films, where 0.1 ≤ t ≤ 0.6 nm. Two series of films were investigated: films with the same number of Co|Ni bilayer repeats (N = 12), and samples in which the overall magnetic layer thickness is kept constant at 3.6 nm (N = 1.2/t). The FMR measurements were conducted with a high frequency broadband coplanar waveguide up to 50 GHz using a flip-chip method. The resonance field and the full width at half maximum were measured as a function of frequency for the field in-plane and field normal to the plane, and as a function of angle to the plane for several frequencies. For both sets of films, we find evidence for the presence of first and second order anisotropy constants, K₁ and K₂. The anisotropy constants are strongly dependent on the thickness t, and to a lesser extent on the total thickness of the magnetic multilayer. The Landé g-factor increases with decreasing t and is practically independent of the multilayer thickness. The magnetic damping parameter α, estimated from the linear dependence of the linewidth ΔH, on frequency, in the field in-plane geometry, increases with decreasing t. This behaviour is attributed to an enhancement of spin-orbit interactions with decreasing Co layer thickness and in thinner films, to a spin-pumping contribution to the damping.     

Spin dynamics at low microwave frequencies in crystalline Fe ultrathin film double layers using co-planar transmission lines

Magnetic damping has been studied in magnetic double layers using a network analyzer (NA) with a coplanar transmission line. The magnetic films consisted of ultrathin crystalline films of Fe separated by an Au spacer. The films were deposited on GaAs(0 0 1) substrates using the molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) technique. NA-ferromagnetic resonance (NA-FMR) measurements were carried out along the magnetic hard axis, allowing one to follow the frequency FMR linewidth down to the 1 GHz range of frequencies. It will be shown that the FMR linewidth in the NA-FMR measurements is not entirely described by Gilbert damping. The additional contribution in the frequency linewidth increases with decreasing frequency, and is most likely caused by dipolar fields associated with an inhomogeneous RF field around the coplanar transmission line.     

Percolation effects in the conductivity and magnetoresistance of compacted chromium dioxide powder

The resistive and magnetoresistive properties of a submicron (120 nm) compacted CrO₂ powder with a Curie temperature of ∼385 K were investigated in the temperature range of 5–430 K for magnetic fields of up to 1.6 T. The specimen revealed a nonmetallic temperature dependence of resistance and high negative magnetoresistance (MR) (20%) in a low-temperature range. The MR magnitude rapidly decreased with an increase in temperature and was less than 0.3% for T > 200 K. Such MR behavior is shown to be characteristic for granular systems with spin-dependent intergranular tunneling. Some features of MR behavior in a low-temperature range (lower than 40 K) can be attributed to the percolation nature of the tunnel conductivity of such a granular system in the presence of a limited number of dominant conducting current paths.     

Dissipative boundary conditions for ferromagnetic resonance equations

Surface scattering of electrons and magnons results in nonuniform dissipation of the energy of ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) modes. This surface damping may be included in proper boundary conditions for the magnetic differential equations of motion, which are derived phenomenologically in the same way as the usual spin-pinning conditions. An analysis of the local energy balance in non-uniform modes leads to the concept of spin-wave energy flow; the dissipative boundary conditions describe the flow of the coherent mode energy into the surface. The magnitude of the surface damping parameters is only crudely estimated. Numerical calculations of the FMR linewidth and the shapes of standing-spinwave spectra indicate that experimentally significant effects may appear with damping parameters near to the estimated upper limits.