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Element-selective techniques are central for the understanding of ultrafast spin dynamics in multi-element materials, such as magnetic alloys. Recently, however, it turned out that the commonly used technique of the transverse magneto-optical Kerr effect (T-MOKE) in the extreme ultraviolet range may have issues with unwanted crosstalk between different elemental signals and energy-dependent non-linear response. This problem can be sizeable, which puts recent observations of ultrafast spin transfer from Fe to Ni sites in FeNi alloys into question. In this study, we investigate the Fe-to-Ni spin transfer in a crosstalk-free time-resolved x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) experiment with a reliable time reference. With XMCD near the absorption maxima, we find a very similar Fe and Ni dynamics as with T-MOKE from identical samples. Considering the potential non-linearities of the T-MOKE response, such a good agreement in our findings is remarkable. Our data provide the ongoing discussion about ultrafast spin-transfer mechanisms in FeNi systems with a broader experimental basis.

We present all-optical studies of spin dynamics in two classes of ferrimagnets. Both sets of experiments use table-top laser-based pump–probe techniques to examine the ultrafast and longer timescale spin excitations. We use the visible/near infra-red time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect (tr-MOKE) to follow the spin dynamics of a series of metallic (FeCo)1−xGdx thin films with varying Gd content. Magnetic compensation in the films occurs at a Gd concentration of ≈26%, and the spin dynamics of the films exhibit a non-monotonic variation in effective magnetization. We also examine spin dynamics in an insulating NiFe2O4 spinel using ultrafast techniques up at extreme ultraviolet energies, which permit element-specific investigations. The element and time-resolved delay scans reveal a non-trivial interaction between spin excitations on the different magnetic sub-lattices of the magnetic insulator.