Michael Körner

Magnetic anisotropy engineering: Single-crystalline Fe films on ion eroded ripple surfaces

We present a method to preselect the direction of an induced in-plane uniaxial magnetic anisotropy (UMA) in thin single-crystalline Fe films on MgO(001). Ion beam irradiation is used to modulate the MgO(001) surface with periodic ripples on the nanoscale. The ripple direction determines the orientation of the UMA, whereas the intrinsic cubic anisotropy of the Fe film is not affected. Thus, it is possible to superimpose an in-plane UMA with a precision of a few degrees—a level of control not reported so far that can be relevant for example in spintronics.

Splitting of spin-wave modes in thin films with arrays of periodic perturbations: theory and experiment

A joint theoretical–experimental study focusing on the description of the ferromagnetic resonance response of thin films in the presence of periodic perturbations introduced on the upper film surface is presented. From the viewpoint of theory, these perturbations may exist in the form of any kind of one- or two-dimensional rectangular defect arrays patterned onto one surface of the magnetic film. Indeed, the defects may be pits or bumps, or ion-implanted regions with a lower saturation magnetization. The complete set of response functions, given by the components of the frequency and wave-vector dependent dynamic magnetic susceptibility tensor of the film exposed to microwave excitation, are provided and are used to explain the experimental data. This allows us to obtain the response of the system due to microwave absorption, from which the zero wave-vector spin-wave modes in the field-frequency spectra, including their intensity, are calculated. Explicit calculations for periodic defects featuring the shape of stripes, dots and rectangles are given in detail, as well as experimental results for stripe-like defects prepared either by topographical depressions or by ion implantation of thin magnetic films. The excellent agreement of the theoretical and experimental results manifests the validity of the presented model.

Quantitative Imaging of the Magnetic Configuration of Modulated Nanostructures by Electron Holography

By means of off-axis electron holography the local distribution of the magnetic induction within and around a poly-crystalline Permalloy (Ni81Fe19) thin film is studied. In addition the stray field above the sample is measured by magnetic force microscopy on a larger area. The film is deposited on a periodically nanostructured (rippled) Si substrate, which was formed by Xe(+) ion beam erosion. This introduces the periodical ripple shape to the Permalloy film. The created ripple morphology is expected to modify the magnetization distribution within the Permalloy and to induce dipolar stray fields. These stray fields play an important role in spinwave dynamics of periodic nanostructures like magnonic crystals. Micromagnetic simulations estimate those stray fields in the order of only 10 mT. Consequently, their experimental determination at nanometer spatial resolution is highly demanding and requires advanced acquisition and reconstruction techniques such as electron holography. The reconstructed magnetic phase images show the magnetized thin film, in which the magnetization direction follows mainly the given morphology. Furthermore, a closer look to the Permalloy/carbon interface reveals stray fields at the detection limit of the method in the order of 10 mT, which is in qualitative agreement with the micromagnetic simulations.

Photon Counting System for Time-resolved Experiments in Multibunch Mode

Photon Counting System for Time-resolved Experiments in Multibunch Mode Aleksandar Puzic a; Timo Korhonen a; Babak Kalantari a; Jörg Raabe a; Christoph Quitmann a; Patrick Jüllig b; Lars Bommer b; Dagmar Goll b; Gisela Schütz b; Sebastian Wintz c; Thomas Strache c; Michael Körner c; Daniel Markó c; Chris Bunce c;Jürgen Fassbender c a Paul Scherrer Institut, Villigen, Switzerland b Max-Planck-Institut fŸr Metallforschung, Stuttgart, Germany c Forschungszentrum Dresden-Rossendorf, Dresden, Germany

Hybrid Monte Carlo study of monolayer graphene with partially screened Coulomb interactions at finite spin density

We report on Hybrid Monte Carlo simulations at finite spin density of the p-band electrons in monolayer graphene with realistic interelectron interactions. Unlike simulations at finite charge-carrier density, these are not affected by a fermion-sign problem. Our results are in qualitative agreement with an interaction-induced warping of the Fermi contours and a reduction of the bandwidth as observed in angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy experiments on charge-doped graphene systems. Furthermore, we find evidence that the neck-disrupting Lifshitz transition, which occurs when the Fermi level traverses the van Hove singularity (VHS), becomes a true quantum phase transition due to interactions. This is in line with an instability of the VHS toward the formation of ordered electronic phases, which has been predicted by a variety of different theoretical approaches.