A. Hierro-Rodríguez

Topological defects and misfit strain in magnetic stripe domains of lateral multilayers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

Stripe domains are studied in perpendicular magnetic anisotropy films nanostructured with a periodic thickness modulation that induces the lateral modulation of both stripe periods and in-plane magnetization. The resulting system is the 2D equivalent of a strained superlattice with properties controlled by interfacial misfit strain within the magnetic stripe structure and shape anisotropy. This allows us to observe, experimentally for the first time, the continuous structural transformation of a grain boundary in this 2D magnetic crystal in the whole angular range. The magnetization reversal process can be tailored through the effect of misfit strain due to the coupling between disclinations in the magnetic stripe pattern and domain walls in the in-plane magnetization configuration.

Fabrication and magnetic properties of nanostructured amorphous Nd?Co films with lateral modulation of magnetic stripe period

Amorphous Nd?Co films with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy have been nanostructured in a lateral magnetic multilayer geometry in order to analyse and modify in a controlled way the configuration of its characteristic stripe domains as well as their rotation processes. Magnetic force microscopy measurements reveal that, actually, the artificial thickness modulation results in size effects on the magnetic stripes, so that the stripe domains configuration can be tuned with the lateral multilayer periodicity, and, due to the consequent reduction of the rotatable magnetic anisotropy, it is possible to modify the stripe rotation processes for in-plane magnetization reversal.

Controlled nucleation of topological defects in the stripe domain patterns of lateral multilayers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

Work was supported by Spanish MICINN under Grant No. FIS2008-06249. R.M. and N.S. acknowledge support from UPV/EHU UFI11/23 and Basque Country Government Grant No. Etorek SE11-304. A.H.-R. acknowledges support from FCT of Portugal grant (Grant No. SFRH/BPD/90471/2012).

Controlled nucleation of topological defects in the stripe domain patterns of Lateral multilayers with Perpendicular Magnetic Anisotropy: competition between magnetostatic, exchange and misfit interactions

Work was supported by Spanish MICINN under Grant No. FIS2008-06249. R.M. and N.S. acknowledge support from UPV/EHU UFI11/23 and Basque Country Government Grant No. Etorek SE11-304. A.H.-R. acknowledges support from FCT of Portugal grant (Grant No. SFRH/BPD/90471/2012).

Interplay between collective pinning and artificial defects on domain wall propagation in Co/Pt multilayers

The interplay between collective pinning on intrinsic structural defects and artificial pinning at a patterned hole is studied in magnetic multilayers with perpendicular anisotropy. The pinning strength of a patterned hole is measured through its efficiency to stop domain wall (DW) propagation into a consecutive unpatterned nanowire section (using antisymmetric magnetoresistance to detect the direction of DW propagation) whereas collective pinning is characterized by the field dependence of DW velocity. Close to room temperature, collective pinning becomes weaker than artificial pinning so that pinning at the hole compensates nucleation-pad geometry, blocking DW propagation across the nanowire.

Tunable exchange bias-like effect in patterned hard-soft two-dimensional lateral composites with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

Patterned hard-soft 2D magnetic lateral composites have been fabricated by e-beam lithography plus dry etching techniques on sputter-deposited NdCo5 thin films with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. Their magnetic behavior is strongly thickness dependent due to the interplay between out-of-plane anisotropy and magnetostatic energy. Thus, the spatial modulation of thicknesses leads to an exchange coupled system with hard/soft magnetic regions in which rotatable anisotropy of the thicker elements provides an extra tool to design the global magnetic behavior of the patterned lateral composite. Kerr microscopy studies (domain imaging and magneto-optical Kerr effect magnetometry) reveal that the resulting hysteresis loops exhibit a tunable exchange bias-like shift that can be switched on/off by the applied magnetic field.

Ag-nanowire metamaterials: spectral reflectance analysis and homogenization models

In this work, we address a study of the spectral reflectance of silver nanowire metamaterials in the visible and near-infrared regions. To this end, several samples were fabricated with different fill-ratios and lattice constants, and their respective optical responses characterized in terms of these parameters. We perform a direct comparison between the collected experimental data with the values predicted by different analytical homogenization models to provide a better understanding of the effective optical behavior of this kind of metamaterials.

Crossed ratchet effects on magnetic domain walls: geometry and transverse field effects

Domain wall propagation across a 2D array of asymmetric holes is strongly dependent on the domain wall configuration: i.e. on whether the wall is flat or kinked. This results in interesting crossed ratchet and asymmetric accommodation effects that have been studied as a function of geometry and transverse field. Micromagnetic simulations have shown that the observation of crossed ratchet effects is easier for arrow than for triangular holes due to a larger field range in which kink propagation is the preferred mode for domain wall motion. Also, it has been found that dc transverse fields can produce a significant enhancement of the easy axis asymmetric accommodation and, also, that ac transverse fields can be rectified by the crossed ratchet potential.

Study of domain wall propagation in nanostructured CoPt multilayers by using antisymmetric magnetoresistance

Domain wall propagation has been studied in perpendicular anisotropy CoPt multilayers patterned by e-beam lithography into 5 μm wide wires. Positive and negative peaks appear in time resolved magnetoresistance curves, associated to the different directions of domain wall propagation along the wires. The field dependence of domain wall velocity is well described by a creep model of a 1D wall in the presence of weak disorder with critical exponent μ=1/4.

Hydrogen sensing via anomalous optical absorption of palladium-based metamaterials.

A palladium (Pd)-based optical metamaterial has been designed, fabricated and characterized for its application in hydrogen sensing. The metamaterial can replace Pd thin films in optical transmission schemes for sensing with performances far superior to those of conventional sensors. This artificial material consists of a palladium-alumina metamaterial fabricated using inexpensive and industrial-friendly bottom-up techniques. During the exposure to hydrogen, the system exhibits anomalous optical absorption when compared to the well-known response of Pd thin films, this phenomenon being the key factor for the sensor sensitivity. The exposure to hydrogen produces a large variation in the light transmission through the metamembrane (more than 30% with 4% in volume hydrogen-nitrogen gas mixture at room temperature and atmospheric pressure), thus avoiding the need for sophisticated optical detection systems. An optical homogenization model is proposed to explain the metamaterial response. These results contribute to the development of reliable and low-cost hydrogen sensors with potential applications in the hydrogen economy and industrial processes to name a few, and also open the door to optically study the hydrogen diffusion processes in Pd nanostructures.