Yaohua Liu

Reversible Control of Co Magnetism by Voltage-Induced Oxidation

We demonstrate that magnetic properties of ultrathin Co films adjacent to Gd2O3 gate oxides can be directly manipulated by voltage. The Co films can be reversibly changed from an optimally oxidized state with a strong perpendicular magnetic anisotropy to a metallic state with an in-plane magnetic anisotropy or to an oxidized state with nearly zero magnetization, depending on the polarity and time duration of the applied electric fields. Consequently, an unprecedentedly large change of magnetic anisotropy energy up to 0.73 erg/cm(2) has been realized in a nonvolatile manner using gate voltages of only a few volts. These results open a new route to achieve ultralow energy magnetization manipulation in spintronic devices.

Injection locking of individual broad-area lasers in an integrated high-power diode array

We report experimental results on the injection locking of individual multimode broad-area high-power laser (one-in-a-time) in a linear array bar consisting of 19 lasers driven by a common current source. Each broad-area laser, capable of generating a beam with a power of 1 W, is injection locked to a single-longitudinal and transverse mode with less than 0.5 mW of injection power. The injection-locked broad-area laser shows very narrow linewidth close to the injection laser regardless of the output power. Our research suggests that the matching of the injection wavelength to one of the free-running modes of lasers in the array is the essential condition for achieving coherent operation of the array via injection locking.

Magnetic structure in Fe/Sm-Co exchange spring bilayers with intermixed interfaces

The depth profile of the intrinsic magnetic properties in an Fe/Sm-Co bilayer fabricated under nearly optimal spring-magnet conditions was determined by complementary studies of polarized neutron reflectometry and micromagnetic simulations. We found that at the Fe/Sm-Co interface, the magnetic properties change gradually at the length scale of 8 nm. In this intermixed interfacial region, the saturation magnetization and magnetic anisotropy are lower and the exchange stiffness is higher than values estimated from the model based on a mixture of Fe and Sm-Co phases. Therefore, the intermixed interface yields superior exchange coupling between the Fe and Sm-Co layers, but at the cost of average magnetization.

Research Update: Spin transfer torques in permalloy on monolayer MoS2

We observe current induced spin transfer torque resonance in permalloy (Py) grown on monolayer MoS2. By passing rf current through the Py/MoS2 bilayer, field-like and damping-like torques are induced which excite the ferromagnetic resonance of Py. The signals are detected via a homodyne voltage from anisotropic magnetoresistance of Py. In comparison to other bilayer systems with strong spin-orbit torques, the monolayer MoS2 cannot provide bulk spin Hall effects and thus indicates the purely interfacial nature of the spin transfer torques. Therefore our results indicate the potential of two-dimensional transition-metal dichalcogenide for the use of interfacial spin-orbitronics applications.

Unanticipated Proximity Behavior in Ferromagnet-Superconductor Heterostructures with Controlled Magnetic Noncollinearity

Magnetization noncollinearity in ferromagnet-superconductor (F/S) heterostructures is expected to enhance the superconducting transition temperature (T(c)) according to the domain-wall superconductivity theory, or to suppress T(c) when spin-triplet Cooper pairs are explicitly considered. We study the proximity effect in F/S structures where the F layer is a Sm-Co/Py exchange-spring bilayer and the S layer is Nb. The exchange-spring contains a single, controllable and quantifiable domain wall in the Py layer. We observe an enhancement of superconductivity that is nonmonotonic as the Py domain wall is increasingly twisted via rotating a magnetic field, different from theoretical predictions. We have excluded magnetic fields and vortex motion as the source of the nonmonotonic behavior. This unanticipated proximity behavior suggests that new physics is yet to be captured in the theoretical treatments of F/S systems containing noncollinear magnetization.

Effect of Interface-Induced Exchange Fields on Cuprate-Manganite Spin Switches

We examine the anomalous inverse spin switch behavior in La0.7Ca0.3MnO3(LCMO)/YBa2Cu3O7-δ (YBCO)/LCMO trilayers by combined transport studies and polarized neutron reflectometry. Measuring magnetization profiles and magnetoresistance in an in-plane rotating magnetic field, we prove that, contrary to many accepted theoretical scenarios, the relative orientation between the two LCMOs magnetizations is not sufficient to determine the magnetoresistance. Rather the field dependence of magnetoresistance is explained by the interplay between the applied magnetic field and the (exponential tail of the) induced exchange field in YBCO, the latter originating from the electronic reconstruction at the LCMO/YBCO interfaces.

Charge Radii of Neutron DeficientFe52,53Produced by Projectile Fragmentation

Bunched-beam collinear laser spectroscopy is performed on neutron deficient ^{52,53}Fe prepared through in-flight separation followed by a gas stopping. This novel scheme is a major step to reach nuclides far from the stability line in laser spectroscopy. Differential mean-square charge radii δ⟨r^{2}⟩ of ^{52,53}Fe are determined relative to stable ^{56}Fe as δ⟨r^{2}⟩^{56,52}=-0.034(13)  fm^{2} and δ⟨r^{2}⟩^{56,53}=-0.218(13)  fm^{2}, respectively, from the isotope shift of atomic hyperfine structures. The multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock method is used to calculate atomic factors to deduce δ⟨r^{2}⟩. The values of δ⟨r^{2}⟩ exhibit a minimum at the N=28 neutron shell closure. The nuclear density functional theory with Fayans and Skyrme energy density functionals is used to interpret the data. The trend of δ⟨r^{2}⟩ along the Fe isotopic chain results from an interplay between single-particle shell structure, pairing, and polarization effects and provides important data for understanding the intricate trend in the δ⟨r^{2}⟩ of closed-shell Ca isotopes.

Charge radii of neutron deficient Fe52,53 produced by projectile fragmentation

Bunched-beam collinear laser spectroscopy is performed on neutron deficient ^{52,53}Fe prepared through in-flight separation followed by a gas stopping. This novel scheme is a major step to reach nuclides far from the stability line in laser spectroscopy. Differential mean-square charge radii δ⟨r^{2}⟩ of ^{52,53}Fe are determined relative to stable ^{56}Fe as δ⟨r^{2}⟩^{56,52}=-0.034(13)  fm^{2} and δ⟨r^{2}⟩^{56,53}=-0.218(13)  fm^{2}, respectively, from the isotope shift of atomic hyperfine structures. The multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock method is used to calculate atomic factors to deduce δ⟨r^{2}⟩. The values of δ⟨r^{2}⟩ exhibit a minimum at the N=28 neutron shell closure. The nuclear density functional theory with Fayans and Skyrme energy density functionals is used to interpret the data. The trend of δ⟨r^{2}⟩ along the Fe isotopic chain results from an interplay between single-particle shell structure, pairing, and polarization effects and provides important data for understanding the intricate trend in the δ⟨r^{2}⟩ of closed-shell Ca isotopes.

Frequency locking and wavelength tuning of nanosecond pulsed broad-area semiconductor lasers

We discuss experimental results of frequency locking and wavelength tuning of a nanosecond pulsed broad-area semiconductor laser. Nanosecond optical pulses with peak power of 25 W and repetition rates of 4–240 kHz are generated from a broad-area laser. An external cavity with a diffractive grating is used to reduce the linewidth of the laser from over 5 nm to less than 0.1 nm. The wavelength of the pulsed laser is tunable over more than 10 nm. The dependence of the laser linewidth on pulse parameters has been investigated.

Voltage-controlled interlayer coupling in perpendicularly magnetized magnetic tunnel junctions

Magnetic interlayer coupling is one of the central phenomena in spintronics. It has been predicted that the sign of interlayer coupling can be manipulated by electric fields, instead of electric currents, thereby offering a promising low energy magnetization switching mechanism. Here we present the experimental demonstration of voltage-controlled interlayer coupling in a new perpendicular magnetic tunnel junction system with a GdOx tunnel barrier, where a large perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and a sizable tunnelling magnetoresistance have been achieved at room temperature. Owing to the interfacial nature of the magnetism, the ability to move oxygen vacancies within the barrier, and a large proximity-induced magnetization of GdOx, both the magnitude and the sign of the interlayer coupling in these junctions can be directly controlled by voltage. These results pave a new path towards achieving energy-efficient magnetization switching by controlling interlayer coupling.