Ultrafast generation of magnetic fields in a Schottky diode.

For the development of future magnetic data storage technologies, the ultrafast generation of local magnetic fields is essential. Subnanosecond excitation of the magnetic state has so far been achieved by launching current pulses into micro-coils and micro-striplines and by using high-energy electron beams. Local injection of a spin-polarized current through an all-metal junction has been proposed as an efficient method of switching magnetic elements, and experiments seem to confirm this. Spin injection has also been observed in hybrid ferromagnetic-semiconductor structures. Here we introduce a different scheme for the ultrafast generation of local magnetic fields in such a hybrid structure. The basis of our approach is to optically pump a Schottky diode with a focused, approximately 150-fs laser pulse. The laser pulse generates a current across the semiconductor-metal junction, which in turn gives rise to an in-plane magnetic field. This scheme combines the localization of current injection techniques with the speed of current generation at a Schottky barrier. Specific advantages include the ability to rapidly create local fields along any in-plane direction anywhere on the sample, the ability to scan the field over many magnetic elements and the ability to tune the magnitude of the field with the diode bias voltage.     

Perpendicular switching of a single ferromagnetic layer induced by in-plane current injection

Modern computing technology is based on writing, storing and retrieving information encoded as magnetic bits. Although the giant magnetoresistance effect has improved the electrical read out of memory elements, magnetic writing remains the object of major research efforts. Despite several reports of methods to reverse the polarity of nanosized magnets by means of local electric fields and currents, the simple reversal of a high-coercivity, single-layer ferromagnet remains a challenge. Materials with large coercivity and perpendicular magnetic anisotropy represent the mainstay of data storage media, owing to their ability to retain a stable magnetization state over long periods of time and their amenability to miniaturization. However, the same anisotropy properties that make a material attractive for storage also make it hard to write to. Here we demonstrate switching of a perpendicularly magnetized cobalt dot driven by in-plane current injection at room temperature. Our device is composed of a thin cobalt layer with strong perpendicular anisotropy and Rashba interaction induced by asymmetric platinum and AlOx interface layers. The effective switching field is orthogonal to the direction of the magnetization and to the Rashba field. The symmetry of the switching field is consistent with the spin accumulation induced by the Rashba interaction and the spin-dependent mobility observed in non-magnetic semiconductors, as well as with the torque induced by the spin Hall effect in the platinum layer. Our measurements indicate that the switching efficiency increases with the magnetic anisotropy of the cobalt layer and the oxidation of the aluminium layer, which is uppermost, suggesting that the Rashba interaction has a key role in the reversal mechanism. To prove the potential of in-plane current switching for spintronic applications, we construct a reprogrammable magnetic switch that can be integrated into non-volatile memory and logic architectures. This device is simple, scalable and compatible with present-day magnetic recording technology.     

A one-dimensional chain state of vortex matter.

Magnetic flux penetrates isotropic type II superconductors in flux-quantized vortices, which arrange themselves into a lattice structure that is independent of the direction of the applied field. In extremely anisotropic high-transition-temperature (high-Tc) superconductors, a lattice of stacks of circular 'pancake' vortices forms when a magnetic field is applied perpendicular to the copper oxide layers, while an orthogonal elongated lattice of elliptical Josephson vortices forms when the applied field is parallel to the layers. Here we report that when a tilted magnetic field is applied to single crystals of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta, these lattices can interact to form a new state of vortex matter in which all stacks of pancake vortices intersect the Josephson vortices. The sublattice of Josephson vortices can therefore be used to manipulate the sublattice of pancake vortices. This result explains the suppression of irreversible magnetization by in-plane fields as seen in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta crystals, a hitherto mysterious observation. The ability to manipulate sublattices could be important for flux-logic devices, where a 'bit' might be represented by a pancake vortex stack, and the problem of vortex positioning is overcome through sublattice interactions. This also enables the development of flux transducers and amplifiers, considerably broadening the scope for applications of anisotropic high-Tc superconductors.     

自旋极化电流驱动下磁涡旋的旋转回归运动和手征性反转

将方向为（-1,1,-1）的3个自旋极化电流通入纳米盘, 用OOMMF(object oriented micromagnetic framework）软件分析自旋极化电流大小和位置分布对磁涡旋动力学行为的影响. 结果表明： 磁涡旋核做旋转回归运动时, 最大速度在轨迹上的位置相对固定, 利用该性质， 可在最大速度处引入缺陷, 使磁涡旋核运动到缺陷处被钉扎并发生反转, 从而实现磁涡旋核极性的可控反转； 通过改变极化电流的大小或位置, 可调节磁涡旋核旋转回归运动频率的大小； 在高电流密度区域, 可实现磁涡旋手征性反转, 且反转时间较短； 与极化电流位置对称分布相比, 其手征性反转的电流范围变大, 达到暂态构型的时间变短.      

铁磁材料磁化涡旋在应变作用下的响应简

磁化涡旋是微米/亚微米铁磁材料中一种常见的磁畴结构，由于它可以被用于高密度的磁性存储设备中，近年来受到了人们的广泛关注。本文基于随时间变化的Ginzburg-Landau方程，采用实空间下的相场模型研究了铁磁材料中磁化涡旋的力磁耦合行为，探讨了铁磁纳米圆柱体中自发磁化涡旋形态以及该结构在沿圆柱体轴向应变作用下的响应行为。结果表明，沿圆柱体轴向的应变对面内磁化分量的幅值和分布影响十分微弱，但对垂直于圆柱体表面磁化分量的影响却十分明显，具体表现为平面外磁化分量的幅值将随着拉应变的增大而增大，又会伴随压应变的增大而减小。随着平面外磁化分量的增加，则更容易探测到该磁化涡旋的极性情况，从而有利于实验观察和实际应用。     

The ultimate speed of magnetic switching in granular recording media

In magnetic memory devices, logical bits are recorded by selectively setting the magnetization vector of individual magnetic domains either 'up' or 'down'. In such devices, the fastest and most efficient recording method involves precessional switching: when a magnetic field B(p) is applied as a write pulse over a period tau, the magnetization vector precesses about the field until B(p)tau reaches the threshold value at which switching occurs. Increasing the amplitude of the write pulse B(p) might therefore substantially shorten the required switching time tau and allow for faster magnetic recording. Here we use very short pulses of a very high magnetic field to show that under these extreme conditions, precessional switching in magnetic media supporting high bit densities no longer takes place at well-defined field strengths; instead, switching occurs randomly within a wide range of magnetic fields. We attribute this behaviour to a momentary collapse of the ferromagnetic order of the spins under the load of the short and high-field pulse, thus establishing an ultimate limit to the speed of deterministic switching and magnetic recording.     

Magnetic control of ferroelectric polarization

The magnetoelectric effect--the induction of magnetization by means of an electric field and induction of polarization by means of a magnetic field--was first presumed to exist by Pierre Curie, and subsequently attracted a great deal of interest in the 1960s and 1970s (refs 2-4). More recently, related studies on magnetic ferroelectrics have signalled a revival of interest in this phenomenon. From a technological point of view, the mutual control of electric and magnetic properties is an attractive possibility, but the number of candidate materials is limited and the effects are typically too small to be useful in applications. Here we report the discovery of ferroelectricity in a perovskite manganite, TbMnO3, where the effect of spin frustration causes sinusoidal antiferromagnetic ordering. The modulated magnetic structure is accompanied by a magnetoelastically induced lattice modulation, and with the emergence of a spontaneous polarization. In the magnetic ferroelectric TbMnO3, we found gigantic magnetoelectric and magnetocapacitance effects, which can be attributed to switching of the electric polarization induced by magnetic fields. Frustrated spin systems therefore provide a new area to search for magnetoelectric media.     

BiFeO_3多铁Landau模型的修正

考虑到Landau自由能在平衡态时必须是稳定的以及Landau唯象模型中的每一个序参量都必须是实数,BiFeO_3材料的Landau自由能展开系数被重新计算.利用这些参数,模拟了电滞回线、磁滞回线和随外加磁场变化的磁电耦合系数,理论结果与最近报道的实验结果吻合得很好.     

自旋极化电流驱动下磁涡旋的旋转回归运动和手征性反转

将方向为（-1,1,-1）的3个自旋极化电流通入纳米盘, 用OOMMF(object oriented micromagnetic framework）软件分析自旋极化电流大小和位置分布对磁涡旋动力学行为的影响. 结果表明： 磁涡旋核做旋转回归运动时, 最大速度在轨迹上的位置相对固定, 利用该性质， 可在最大速度处引入缺陷, 使磁涡旋核运动到缺陷处被钉扎并发生反转, 从而实现磁涡旋核极性的可控反转； 通过改变极化电流的大小或位置, 可调节磁涡旋核旋转回归运动频率的大小； 在高电流密度区域, 可实现磁涡旋手征性反转, 且反转时间较短； 与极化电流位置对称分布相比, 其手征性反转的电流范围变大, 达到暂态构型的时间变短.      

Spatially resolved electronic structure inside and outside the vortex cores of a high-temperature superconductor

Puzzling aspects of high-transition-temperature (high-Tc) superconductors include the prevalence of magnetism in the normal state and the persistence of superconductivity in high magnetic fields. Superconductivity and magnetism generally are thought to be incompatible, based on what is known about conventional superconductors. Recent results, however, indicate that antiferromagnetism can appear in the superconducting state of a high-Tc superconductor in the presence of an applied magnetic field. Magnetic fields penetrate a superconductor in the form of quantized flux lines, each of which represents a vortex of supercurrents. Superconductivity is suppressed in the core of the vortex and it has been suggested that antiferromagnetism might develop there. Here we report the results of a high-field nuclear-magnetic-resonance (NMR) imaging experiment in which we spatially resolve the electronic structure of near-optimally doped YBa2Cu3O7-delta inside and outside vortex cores. Outside the cores, we find strong antiferromagnetic fluctuations, whereas inside we detect electronic states that are rather different from those found in conventional superconductors.     

Current-induced domain-wall switching in a ferromagnetic semiconductor structure

Magnetic information storage relies on external magnetic fields to encode logical bits through magnetization reversal. But because the magnetic fields needed to operate ultradense storage devices are too high to generate, magnetization reversal by electrical currents is attracting much interest as a promising alternative encoding method. Indeed, spin-polarized currents can reverse the magnetization direction of nanometre-sized metallic structures through torque; however, the high current densities of 10(7)-10(8) A cm(-2) that are at present required exceed the threshold values tolerated by the metal interconnects of integrated circuits. Encoding magnetic information in metallic systems has also been achieved by manipulating the domain walls at the boundary between regions with different magnetization directions, but the approach again requires high current densities of about 10(7) A cm(-2). Here we demonstrate that, in a ferromagnetic semiconductor structure, magnetization reversal through domain-wall switching can be induced in the absence of a magnetic field using current pulses with densities below 10(5) A cm(-2). The slow switching speed and low ferromagnetic transition temperature of our current system are impractical. But provided these problems can be addressed, magnetic reversal through electric pulses with reduced current densities could provide a route to magnetic information storage applications.     

介质中的电磁能量密度及其损耗

以电磁场理论为基础,从场与介质相互作用的角度详细分析了介质中电（磁）场能量密度的物理意义,将介质中的电磁能量密度分解为电（磁）场能量密度和介质的极（磁）化能量密度.极（磁）化能量密度决定于极（磁）化强度和外场强度.在交变电（磁）场中产生电磁能量损耗的物理机制是,由于非线性介质中的各种阻尼作用,电（磁）偶极矩跟不上外场的变化而出现弛豫损耗,电磁能量被损耗转换为热能.利用极（磁）化能量密度公式导出在简谐交变外场中电磁能量损耗的平均功率密度表达式,该损耗功率密度与介质的相对介电常数（磁导率）的虚部、外场频率和场强的平方成正比.电磁能量密度时变值分解为场能时变值、极（磁）化能时变值和电磁损耗时变值.     

Magnetization vector manipulation by electric fields

Conventional semiconductor devices use electric fields to control conductivity, a scalar quantity, for information processing. In magnetic materials, the direction of magnetization, a vector quantity, is of fundamental importance. In magnetic data storage, magnetization is manipulated with a current-generated magnetic field (Oersted-Ampère field), and spin current is being studied for use in non-volatile magnetic memories. To make control of magnetization fully compatible with semiconductor devices, it is highly desirable to control magnetization using electric fields. Conventionally, this is achieved by means of magnetostriction produced by mechanically generated strain through the use of piezoelectricity. Multiferroics have been widely studied in an alternative approach where ferroelectricity is combined with ferromagnetism. Magnetic-field control of electric polarization has been reported in these multiferroics using the magnetoelectric effect, but the inverse effect-direct electrical control of magnetization-has not so far been observed. Here we show that the manipulation of magnetization can be achieved solely by electric fields in a ferromagnetic semiconductor, (Ga,Mn)As. The magnetic anisotropy, which determines the magnetization direction, depends on the charge carrier (hole) concentration in (Ga,Mn)As. By applying an electric field using a metal-insulator-semiconductor structure, the hole concentration and, thereby, the magnetic anisotropy can be controlled, allowing manipulation of the magnetization direction.     

Ultrafast precessional magnetization reversal by picosecond magnetic field pulse shaping

Since the invention of the first magnetic memory disk in 1954, much effort has been put into enhancing the speed, bit density and reliability of magnetic memory devices. In the case of magnetic random access memory (MRAM) devices, fast coherent magnetization rotation by precession of the entire memory cell is desired, because reversal by domain-wall motion is much too slow. In principle, the fundamental limit of the switching speed via precession is given by half of the precession period. However, under-critically damped systems exhibit severe ringing and simulations show that, as a consequence, undesired back-switching of magnetic elements of an MRAM can easily be initiated by subsequent write pulses, threatening data integrity. We present a method to reverse the magnetization in under-critically damped systems by coherent rotation of the magnetization while avoiding any ringing. This is achieved by applying specifically shaped magnetic field pulses that match the intrinsic properties of the magnetic elements. We demonstrate, by probing all three magnetization components, that reliable precessional reversal in lithographically structured micrometre-sized elliptical permalloy elements is possible at switching times of about 200 ps, which is ten times faster than the natural damping time constant.     

各向异性亚铁磁链的自旋波理论

利用自旋波理论,对各向异性的亚铁磁链进行研究,得到了低激发能谱,同时计算了该体系的自由能、比热容等热力学量.进一步考虑在外磁场作用下该系统的情况,计算了系统的磁化强度,其磁化强度曲线出现一个平台,此平台随着各向异性因子的增加而逐渐消失.通过对这些物理量的研究,得出各向异性因子在亚铁磁链中起到很重要的作用.对于该体系中准粒子的激发,在两个临界值之间的各向异性因子对其起到一定的抑制作用,而在其它的情况下,这种作用会消失.因此,对于各向异性的亚铁磁链,各向异性因子就像是该系统的开关.     

FeCuNbSiB微晶软磁材料的成分,组织及热处理工艺选择原则

文中讨论了新型超微晶软磁合金－ＦｅＣｕＮｂＳｉＢ合金的成分，组织及热处理工艺选择原则。通过实验证明了采用合适的成分和热处理工艺，可ｅＣｕＮｂＳｉＢ非晶转变为纳米级超微晶合金。该合金具有较高的饱和磁感应强度，高磁导率，低矫无顽力和低铁损的优良综合磁性能。     

Non-collinear states in magnetic sensors

Certain materials have an electrical conductivity that is extremely sensitive to an applied magnetic field; this phenomenon, termed 'giant magnetoresistance', can be used in sensor applications. Typically, such a device comprises several ferromagnetic layers, separated by non-magnetic spacer layer(s)--a so-called 'super-lattice' geometry. In the absence of a magnetic field, the ferromagnetic layers may be magnetized in opposite directions by interlayer exchange coupling, while an applied external magnetic field causes the magnetization directions to become parallel. Because the resistivity depends on the magnetization direction, an applied field that changes the magnetic configuration may be detected simply by measuring the change in resistance. In order to detect weak fields, the energy difference between different magnetization directions should be small; this is usually achieved by using many non-magnetic atomic spacer layers. Here we show, using first-principles theory, that materials combinations such as Fe/V/Co multilayers can produce a non-collinear magnetic state in which the magnetization direction between Fe and Co layers differs by about 90 degrees. This state is energetically almost degenerate with the collinear magnetic states, even though the number of non-magnetic vanadium spacer layers is quite small.     

纳米磁性颗粒小点阵体系的动力学响应

通过数值解Landau Lifshitz Gilbert(LLG)方程,来研究一个具有垂直各向异性的N×N平方点阵结构的单畴铁磁颗粒体系的动力学响应.由于磁性颗粒间的偶极相互作用,我们发现存在三种不同的典型磁矩构形分布.这些构形由磁晶各向异性和磁偶相互作用之间的竞争所决定.磁性粒子的点阵几何构形是影响磁矩翻转的重要因素,偶极相互作用的增强,引起不同位置的颗粒磁矩发生先后顺序的翻转.当初态所有颗粒磁矩都平行于 z方向,且颗粒间的偶极相互作用不足以使磁矩发生耦合翻转,反转某个磁矩所需的最小翻转场将比反转单个(即无偶极相互作用)磁矩时所需的最小翻转场小得多.该种效应随着颗粒间距的增加,将明显地减弱,最小翻转场很快地增加且趋于反转单个磁矩时所需的最小翻转场.当所有颗粒磁矩处于各种不同初态时,弱偶极相互作用加宽了翻转场的取值范围.     

(001)取向FePt薄膜的有序化过程及磁性

在加热到400°C的MgO(001)单晶基片上,用磁控溅射法沉积了25 nm厚的FePt薄膜,在Ta=[500°C,800°C]温度范围进行5 h的热处理.用X射线衍射仪、振动样品磁强计和可外加磁场的磁力显微镜分析了薄膜的结构和磁性.结果表明,未经热处理的薄膜能够在MgO(001)单晶基片的诱导下实现(001)取向生长,但仍处于无序的A1相,呈软磁性.Ta=500°C,薄膜结构没有明显改变.Ta=600°C,FePt发生部分有序化,薄膜中A1相和L10相(有序相)共存,形成一种具有磁各向异性的特殊硬磁-软磁复合体.软磁相的磁性主要表现在沿平行于膜面方向施加磁场的磁化曲线中,但矫顽力可以达到10 kOe(1Oe=103/4πA m-1),硬磁相的磁性主要表现在沿垂直于膜面方向施加磁场的磁化曲线中,矫顽力却只有5kOe.这说明薄膜中硬磁相和软磁相之间存在强烈的交换耦合,形成了磁性弹簧.当Ta提高到700°C,薄膜基本完成有序化,磁化易轴彻底转向垂直于膜面的方向,矫顽力大于20 kOe.原子力显微镜和磁力显微镜观察表明,薄膜由岛状颗粒构成,在Ta=700°C时大部分颗粒内部形成多磁畴结构,在不太大的磁场作用下依靠畴壁移动和消失变为单磁畴,磁化反转过程应该主要依靠形核.     

Optical detection of liquid-state NMR

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in liquids and solids is primarily detected by recording the net dipolar magnetic field outside the spin-polarized sample. But the recorded bulk magnetic field itself provides only limited spatial or structural information about the sample. Most NMR applications rely therefore on more elaborate techniques such as magnetic field gradient encoding or spin correlation spectroscopy, which enable spatially resolved imaging and molecular structure analysis, respectively. Here we demonstrate a fundamentally different and intrinsically information-richer modality of detecting NMR, based on the rotation of the polarization of a laser beam by the nuclear spins in a liquid sample. Optical NMR detection has in fact a long history in atomic vapours with narrow resonance lines, but has so far only been applied to highly specialized condensed matter systems such as quantum dots. It has been predicted that laser illumination can shift NMR frequencies and thus aid detection, but the effect is very small and has never been observed. In contrast, our measurements on water and liquid 129Xe show that the complementary effect-the rotation of light polarization by nuclear spins-is readily measurable, and that it is enhanced dramatically in samples containing heavy nuclei. This approach to optical NMR detection should allow correlated optical and NMR spectroscopy on complex molecules, and continuous two-dimensional imaging of nuclear magnetization with spatial resolution limited only by light diffraction.