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Iacocca E, Liu TM, Reid AH, Fu Z, Ruta S, Granitzka PW, Jal E, Bonetti S, Gray AX, Graves CE, Kukreja R, Chen Z, Higley DJ, Chase T, Le Guyader L, Hirsch K, Ohldag H, Schlotter WF, Dakovski GL, Coslovich G, Hoffmann MC, Carron S, Tsukamoto A, Kirilyuk A, Kimel AV, Rasing T, Stöhr J, Evans RFL, Ostler T, Chantrell RW, Hoefer MA, Silva TJ, Dürr HA. Spin-current-mediated rapid magnon localisation and coalescence after ultrafast optical pumping of ferrimagnetic alloys. Nat Commun 2019; 10:1756. [PMID: 30988403 PMCID: PMC6465265 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-09577-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2018] [Accepted: 03/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Sub-picosecond magnetisation manipulation via femtosecond optical pumping has attracted wide attention ever since its original discovery in 1996. However, the spatial evolution of the magnetisation is not yet well understood, in part due to the difficulty in experimentally probing such rapid dynamics. Here, we find evidence of a universal rapid magnetic order recovery in ferrimagnets with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy via nonlinear magnon processes. We identify magnon localisation and coalescence processes, whereby localised magnetic textures nucleate and subsequently interact and grow in accordance with a power law formalism. A hydrodynamic representation of the numerical simulations indicates that the appearance of noncollinear magnetisation via optical pumping establishes exchange-mediated spin currents with an equivalent 100% spin polarised charge current density of 107 A cm-2. Such large spin currents precipitate rapid recovery of magnetic order after optical pumping. The magnon processes discussed here provide new insights for the stabilization of desired meta-stable states.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Iacocca
- Department of Applied Mathematics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA
- National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO, 80305, USA
- Department of Physics, Division for Theoretical Physics, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, 412 96, Sweden
| | - T-M Liu
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - A H Reid
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - Z Fu
- School of Physics, Science, and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - S Ruta
- Department of Physics, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - P W Granitzka
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - E Jal
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - S Bonetti
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
- Department of Physics, Stockholm University, Stockholm, 106 91, Sweden
- Department of Molecular Science and Nanosystems, Ca' Foscari University of Venice, Venezia-Mestre, 30172, Italy
| | - A X Gray
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
- Department of Physics, Temple University, 1925 N. 12th St., Philadelphia, PA, 19122, USA
| | - C E Graves
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - R Kukreja
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - Z Chen
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - D J Higley
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - T Chase
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - L Le Guyader
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
- Spectroscopy & Coherent Scattering, European X-Ray Free-Electron Laser Facility GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869, Schenefeld, Germany
| | - K Hirsch
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - H Ohldag
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - W F Schlotter
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - G L Dakovski
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - G Coslovich
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - M C Hoffmann
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - S Carron
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - A Tsukamoto
- Department of Electronics and Computer Science, Nihon University, 7-24-1 Narashino-dai Funabashi, Chiba, 274-8501, Japan
| | - A Kirilyuk
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - A V Kimel
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Th Rasing
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - J Stöhr
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - R F L Evans
- Department of Physics, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - T Ostler
- Physique des Matériaux et Nanostructures, Université de Liège, Liège, B-4000, Sart Tilman, Belgium
- Faculty of Arts, Computing, Engineering and Sciences, Sheffield Hallam University, Howard Street, Sheffield, S1 1WB, UK
| | - R W Chantrell
- Department of Physics, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - M A Hoefer
- Department of Applied Mathematics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA
| | - T J Silva
- National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO, 80305, USA
| | - H A Dürr
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA.
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala University, Box 516, 751 20, Uppsala, Sweden.
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Wu B, Wang T, Graves CE, Zhu D, Schlotter WF, Turner JJ, Hellwig O, Chen Z, Dürr HA, Scherz A, Stöhr J. Elimination of X-Ray Diffraction through Stimulated X-Ray Transmission. Phys Rev Lett 2016; 117:027401. [PMID: 27447522 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.117.027401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
X-ray diffractive imaging with laterally coherent x-ray free-electron laser (XFEL) pulses is increasingly utilized to obtain ultrafast snapshots of matter. Here we report the amazing disappearance of single-shot charge and magnetic diffraction patterns recorded with resonantly tuned, narrow bandwidth XFEL pulses. Our experimental results reveal the exquisite sensitivity of single-shot charge and magnetic diffraction patterns of a magnetic film to the onset of field-induced stimulated elastic x-ray forward scattering. The loss in diffraction contrast, measured over 3 orders of magnitude in intensity, is in remarkable quantitative agreement with a recent theory that is extended to include diffraction.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Wu
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Department of Applied Physics, Stanford, California 94035, USA
| | - T Wang
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Department of Material Science and Engineering, Stanford, California 94035, USA
| | - C E Graves
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Department of Applied Physics, Stanford, California 94035, USA
| | - D Zhu
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA
| | - W F Schlotter
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA
| | - J J Turner
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA
| | - O Hellwig
- HGST, a Western Digital Company, 3403 Yerba Buena Road, San Jose, California 95135, USA
| | - Z Chen
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, and Department of Physics, Stanford, California 94035, USA
| | - H A Dürr
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA
| | - A Scherz
- European XFEL GmbH, Albert-Einstein-Ring 19, 22761 Hamburg, Germany
| | - J Stöhr
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA
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Graves CE, Reid AH, Wang T, Wu B, de Jong S, Vahaplar K, Radu I, Bernstein DP, Messerschmidt M, Müller L, Coffee R, Bionta M, Epp SW, Hartmann R, Kimmel N, Hauser G, Hartmann A, Holl P, Gorke H, Mentink JH, Tsukamoto A, Fognini A, Turner JJ, Schlotter WF, Rolles D, Soltau H, Strüder L, Acremann Y, Kimel AV, Kirilyuk A, Rasing T, Stöhr J, Scherz AO, Dürr HA. Nanoscale spin reversal by non-local angular momentum transfer following ultrafast laser excitation in ferrimagnetic GdFeCo. Nat Mater 2013; 12:293-8. [PMID: 23503010 DOI: 10.1038/nmat3597] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2012] [Accepted: 02/07/2012] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Ultrafast laser techniques have revealed extraordinary spin dynamics in magnetic materials that equilibrium descriptions of magnetism cannot explain. Particularly important for future applications is understanding non-equilibrium spin dynamics following laser excitation on the nanoscale, yet the limited spatial resolution of optical laser techniques has impeded such nanoscale studies. Here we present ultrafast diffraction experiments with an X-ray laser that probes the nanoscale spin dynamics following optical laser excitation in the ferrimagnetic alloy GdFeCo, which exhibits macroscopic all-optical switching. Our study reveals that GdFeCo displays nanoscale chemical and magnetic inhomogeneities that affect the spin dynamics. In particular, we observe Gd spin reversal in Gd-rich nanoregions within the first picosecond driven by the non-local transfer of angular momentum from larger adjacent Fe-rich nanoregions. These results suggest that a magnetic material's microstructure can be engineered to control transient laser-excited spins, potentially allowing faster (~ 1 ps) spin reversal than in present technologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- C E Graves
- Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Sciences, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA
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