Kenta Amemiya

Operation of a fast polarization-switching source at the Photon Factory

We have been developing a fast polarization-switching source for the vacuum ultraviolet and soft X-ray region at the B15-16 straight section of the 2.5-GeV Photon Factory (PF) storage ring. The source consists of two tandem APPLE-II-type elliptically polarizing undulators (EPUs), namely, U#16-1 and U#16-2, and a fast kicker system. The target frequency of polarization switching is 10 Hz. As the first step, we installed U#16-1 and five identical bump kickers in the PF ring in March 2008. Then, we constructed U#16-2 and installed it in August 2010. The orbit switching operation at 10 Hz, for user experiments, started in January 2012. We describe the details of the operation status of two EPUs and the fast local bump system in this report.

Origin of focused laser irradiation-induced enhancement of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in Pt/Co/Pt thin films investigated by spatially resolved x-ray absorption spectroscopy

The origin of the focused single-pulse laser irradiation-induced changes in magnetic anisotropy of a Pt/Co/Pt film is investigated by the x-ray absorption near-edge structure and extended x-ray absorption fine structure techniques combined with the photoelectron emission microscope. A significant increase of the Co–Co bond length in both in-plane and out-of-plane directions is observed on the periphery of the laser spot, at which perpendicular magnetization appears. With increasing laser power density towards the center of the laser spot, anisotropic structural changes are observed accompanied by the reappearance of in-plane magnetization. The enhancement of perpendicular magnetization is attributed to the lattice expansion-induced magnetoelastic effect, while the in-plane compressive strain in the Co film is suggested to be the origin of the reappearance of in-plane magnetization at higher laser power densities.The origin of the focused single-pulse laser irradiation-induced changes in magnetic anisotropy of a Pt/Co/Pt film is investigated by the x-ray absorption near-edge structure and extended x-ray absorption fine structure techniques combined with the photoelectron emission microscope. A significant increase of the Co–Co bond length in both in-plane and out-of-plane directions is observed on the periphery of the laser spot, at which perpendicular magnetization appears. With increasing laser power density towards the center of the laser spot, anisotropic structural changes are observed accompanied by the reappearance of in-plane magnetization. The enhancement of perpendicular magnetization is attributed to the lattice expansion-induced magnetoelastic effect, while the in-plane compressive strain in the Co film is suggested to be the origin of the reappearance of in-plane magnetization at higher laser power densities.

Manipulation of magnetic properties of ferromagnetic Ni thin films grown on Cu(001) by antiferromagnetic NiO and effects of voltage application

The magnetic properties of ferromagnetic Ni thin films grown on a Cu(001) single crystal are modified by the growth of a NiO overlayer, as well as by the voltage application through the NiO/Ni interface. A spin reorientation transition from in-plane to perpendicular magnetization is induced with increasing NiO thickness, and the coercive field significantly increases by further growth of the NiO overlayer. The remanent magnetization of the films is found to be modulated by the voltage application. Moreover, a small exchange-bias effect arising from the ferromagnetic–antiferromagnetic interaction at the interface is observed, and the amplitude of the effect is modified by the applied voltage.