We demonstrate a quasi ballistic switching of the magnetization in a microscopic mag-neto resistive memory cell. By means of time resolved magneto transport we follow the large angle precession of the free layer magnetization of a spin valve cell upon applica-tion of transverse magnetic field pulses. Stopping the field pulse after a 180 degree precession rotation leads to magnetization reversal with reversal times as short as 165 ps. This switching mode represents the fundamental ultra fast limit of field induced magnetization reversal.
Computational and experimental results on the thermally-induced magnetization reversal in single-domain magnetic nanoparticles are reported. The simulations are based on the direct integration of the Fokker-Planck equation that governs the dynamics of the magnetic moment associated with the nanoparticles. A mean field approximation is used to account for the influence of the dipolar interaction between nanoparticles. It is shown that the interactions can either speed up or slow down the reversal process, depending on the angle between the external magnetic field and the axis of easy magnetization. The numerical results are in good agreement with experimental measurements on cobalt-platinum nanoparticles.
The diversity of various manganese types and its complexes in the Mn-doped ${rm A^{III}B^V}$ semiconductor structures leads to a number of intriguing phenomena. Here we show that the interplay between the ordinary substitutional Mn acceptors and interstitial Mn donors as well as donor-acceptor dimers could result in a reversal of electron magnetization. In our all-optical scheme the impurity-to-band excitation via the Mn dimers results in direct orientation of the ionized Mn-donor $d$ shell. A photoexcited electron is then captured by the interstitial Mn and the electron spin becomes parallel to the optically oriented $d$ shell. That produces, in the low excitation regime, the spin-reversal electron magnetization. As the excitation intensity increases the capture by donors is saturated and the polarization of delocalized electrons restores the normal average spin in accordance with the selection rules. A possibility of the experimental observation of the electron spin reversal by means of polarized photoluminescence is discussed.
New experiments are presented on the transmission of electron waves through a 2DEG (2 dimensional electron gas) ring with a gate on top of one of the branches. Magnetoconductance oscillations are observed, and the phase of the Aharanov-Bohm signal alternates between 0 and pi as the gate voltage is scanned. A Fourier transform of the data reveals a dominant period in the voltage which corresponds to the energy spacing between successive transverse modes.A theoretical model including random phase shifts between successive modes reproduces the essential features of the experiment.
The interplay between intrinsic and surface/interface-induced magnetic anisotropies strongly in- fluences magnetization processes in nanomagnetic systems. We develop a micromagnetic theory to describe the field-driven reorientation in nanomagnets with cubic and uniaxial anisotropies. Spin configurations in competing phases and parameters of accompanying multidomain states are calculated as functions of the applied field and the magnetic anisotropies. The constructed magnetic phase diagrams allow to classify different types of the magnetization reversal and to provide detailed analysis of the switching processes in magnetic nanostructures. The calculated magnetization profiles of isolated domain walls show that the equilibrium parameters of such walls are extremely sensitive to applied magnetic field and values of the competing anisotropies and can vary in a broad range. For nanolayers with perpendicular anisotropy the geometrical parameters of stripe domains have been calculated as functions of a bias field. The results are applied to analyse the magnetization processes as observed in various nanosystems with competing anisotropies, mainly, in diluted magnetic semiconductor films (Ga,Mn)As.
The large arrays of magnetic dots are the building blocks of magnonic crystals and the emerging bit patterned media for future recording technology. In order to fully utilize the functionalities of high density magnetic nanodots, a method for the selective reversal of a single nanodot in a matrix of dots is desired. We have proposed a method for magnetization reversal of a single nanodot with microwave excitation in a matrix of magneto-statically interacting dots. The method is based on the excitation of collective modes and the spatial anomaly in the microwave power absorption. We perform numerical simulations to demonstrate the possibility of switching a single dot from any initial state of a 3 by 3 matrix of dots, and develop a theoretical model for the phenomena. We discuss the applicability of the proposed method for introducing defect modes in magnonic crystals as well as for future magnetic recording.