Search

The spin absorption process in a ferromagnetic material depends on the spin orientation relative to the magnetization. Using a ferromagnet to absorb the pure spin current created within a lateral spin valve, we evidence and quantify a sizable orientation dependence of the spin absorption in Co, CoFe, and NiFe. These experiments allow us to determine the spin-mixing conductance, an elusive but fundamental parameter of the spin-dependent transport. We show that the obtained values cannot be understood within a model considering only the Larmor, transverse decoherence, and spin diffusion lengths, and rather suggest that the spin-mixing conductance is actually limited by the Sharvin conductance.

Large spin Hall angles have been observed in 3d ferromagnets, but their origin, and especially their link with the ferromagnetic order, remain unclear. Here, we investigate the evolution of the inverse spin Hall effect of Ni_{60}Cu_{40} and Ni_{50}Cu_{50} across their Curie temperatures using spin-pumping experiments. We show that the inverse spin Hall effect in these samples is comparable to that of platinum, and that it is insensitive to the magnetic order. These results point toward a Heisenberg localized model of the transition and suggest that the large spin Hall effects in 3d ferromagnets can be independent of the magnetic phase.

We report the observation of spin-to-charge current conversion in strained mercury telluride at room temperature, using spin pumping experiments. We show that a HgCdTe barrier can be used to protect the HgTe from direct contact with the ferromagnet, leading to very high conversion rates, with inverse Edelstein lengths up to 2.0±0.5  nm. The influence of the HgTe layer thickness on the conversion efficiency is found to differ strongly from what is expected in spin Hall effect systems. These measurements, associated with the temperature dependence of the resistivity, suggest that these high conversion rates are due to the spin momentum locking property of HgTe surface states.

Through combined ferromagnetic resonance, spin pumping, and inverse spin Hall effect experiments in Co|Pt bilayers and Co|Cu|Pt trilayers, we demonstrate consistent values of ℓsfPt=3.4±0.4  nm and θSHEPt=0.056±0.010 for the respective spin diffusion length and spin Hall angle for Pt. Our data and model emphasize the partial depolarization of the spin current at each interface due to spin-memory loss. Our model reconciles the previously published spin Hall angle values and explains the different scaling lengths for the ferromagnetic damping and the spin Hall effect induced voltage.

Electrical spin injection into semiconductors paves the way for exploring new phenomena in the area of spin physics and new generations of spintronic devices. However the exact role of interface states in the spin injection mechanism from a magnetic tunnel junction into a semiconductor is still under debate. In this Letter, we demonstrate a clear transition from spin accumulation into interface states to spin injection in the conduction band of n-Ge. We observe spin signal amplification at low temperature due to spin accumulation into interface states followed by a clear transition towards spin injection in the conduction band from 200 K up to room temperature. In this regime, the spin signal is reduced to a value compatible with the spin diffusion model. More interestingly, the observation in this regime of inverse spin Hall effect in germanium generated by spin pumping and the modulation of the spin signal by a gate voltage clearly demonstrate spin accumulation in the germanium conduction band.

We show that magnetization reversal detection can be achieved at room temperature using the contribution of magnons to resistivity, in 50 nm wide nanowires with either perpendicular anisotropy (FePt) or in-plane magnetization (NiFe). Even though these nanowires are made from single layers, simple magnetoresistance measurements can be used to measure switching fields, or to detect the position of a domain wall along a nanowire. Surprisingly, in NiFe nanowires, and for applied fields nearly parallel to the wire, the magnon contribution is found to dominate the classical anisotropic magnetoresistance.

We describe the field induced depinning process of a magnetic domain wall (DW) from a single bidimensional nanometric defect. The DW propagates in a wire lithographed on a film with strong perpendicular anisotropy. We observe a statistical distribution of the relaxation time consistent with a Néel-Brown picture of magnetization reversal. This indicates that the nanometric DW can be considered as an ideal monodomain particle switching over a single energy barrier. Such a stochastic character of DW depinning has to be taken into account for spintronic applications.

The reversal process of thin FePt/Pt(001) layers with perpendicular magnetization was observed by magnetic imaging techniques. Reversal occurs through domain wall propagation across a strongly disordered rectangular lattice of linear anisotropy defects. Micromagnetic simulations of domain wall pinning allowed deriving an analytical model of the reversal process unto percolation threshold. Quantitative agreement is found between the calculated and experimental fractal dimension of the reversed domain.

We show how, combining He ion irradiation and thermal mobility below 600 K, the transformation from chemical disorder to order in thin films of an intermetallic ferromagnet (FePd) may be triggered and controlled. Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations show that the initial directional short range order determines the transformation. Magnetic ordering perpendicular to the film plane was achieved, promoting the initially weak magnetic anisotropy to the highest values known for FePd films. Applications to ultrahigh density magnetic recording are suggested.

The resistance generated by individual domain walls is measured in a FePd nanostructure. Combining transport and magnetic imaging measurements, the intrinsic domain wall resistance is quantified. It is found positive and of a magnitude consistent with that predicted by models based on spin scattering effects within the walls. This magnetoresistance at a nanometer scale allows a direct counting of the number of walls inside the nanostructure. The effect is then used to measure changes in the magnetic configuration of submicron stripes under application of a magnetic field.