J. M. Alameda

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.

Asymmetric grazing incidence small angle x-ray scattering and anisotropic domain wall motion in obliquely grown nanocrystalline Co films.

Strong asymmetries have been observed in grazing incidence small angle x-ray scattering (GISAXS) in situ patterns obtained from 30 nm-thick nanocrystalline Co films prepared by oblique sputtering (15°-75° off-sample normal). These asymmetries have been qualitatively simulated by a simple model consisting of an ensemble of 8 nm-wide inclined Co nanocolumns. It is found that narrow inclined features appear in the diffuse background resembling those characteristic of faceted systems, which can be used to obtain straightforward non-destructive estimations of buried nanocolumnar grains inclination, even for oblique angles below 45°, when the stronger and broader asymmetric features of the pattern are not yet fully formed. Furthermore, using magneto-optical microscopy, a marked change in the magnetic domains nucleation and growth process has been observed in the sample prepared at 75°, with the stronger GISAXS asymmetries. Easy axis magnetization reversal starts by a random and homogeneous nucleation of small (∼μm) elongated domains aligned with the nanocolumns long axis and proceeds through the preferred propagation of head-to-head domain walls (DWs) along the applied field direction. This peculiar magnetic behavior indicates that the strongly anisotropic nanostructuring created by the oblique growth process is equivalent, from a magnetic point of view, to an array of self-assembled buried nanowires. These results show how GISAXS and magneto-optical microscopy can be combined as a powerful tool for correlating the morphology and magnetism of thin nanostructured systems.

Inverted hysteresis loops in annealed Co–Nb–Zr and Co–Fe–Mo–Si–B amorphous thin films

Abstract Amorphous CoNbZr and CoFeMoSiB films with uniaxial anisotropy were obtained onto Mylar and Kapton substrates, and magnetically annealed under a field transverse to the as-prepared easy axis. Annealed samples exhibited a remarkable behaviour: inverted loops with M r / M s M r / M s , the latter being found between the as-prepared EA and annealing field directions. Results are explained by considering non-collinear effective uniaxial and biaxial anisotropies acting on the mean magnetization.

Double percolation effects and fractal behavior in magnetic/superconducting hybrids

Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy ferromagnetic/superconducting (FM/SC) bilayers with a labyrinth domain structure are used to study nucleation of superconductivity on a fractal network, tunable through magnetic history. As clusters of reversed domains appear in the FM layer, the SC film shows a percolative behavior that depends on two independent processes: the arrangement of initial reversed domains and the fractal geometry of expanding clusters. For a full labyrinth structure, the behavior of the upper critical field is typical of confined superconductivity on a fractal network.

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.

Coercive and anisotropy fields in patterned amorphous FeSi submicrometric structures

Amorphous FexSi1−x films have been prepared on Si substrates in order to fabricate submicrometric magnetic structures with soft magnetic behavior. The magnetic properties compositional dependence of the unpatterned samples has been analyzed to select the Fe content (x=0.7) with the lowest coercive and anisotropy fields values. Arrays of Fe0.7Si0.3 lines have been fabricated by electron beam lithography combined with a liftoff technique, with typical dimensions of 200 nm linewidth and 1 μm line spacing. These arrays present coercive fields parallel to the line direction as small as 9 Oe.

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).

Coercive fields of amorphous Co–Si films with diluted arrays of antidots

Diluted arrays of antidots have been patterned by electron beam lithography and an etching process on amorphous Co–Si films of well defined uniaxial anisotropy. The analysis of the angular dependence of the hysteresis loops shows that the antidot arrays present a similar uniaxial anisotropy to the unpatterned film, and that the main effect of patterning for this small antidot density appears as an enhancement in the coercivity. The observed easy axis coercive fields are consistent with the estimates for domain wall pinning by a non-magnetic inclusion surrounded by a closure domain structure. However, the angular dependence of the coercivity presents an anomalous behaviour that points to the existence of an anisotropic domain wall pinning mechanism of the antidot arrays.

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.