1. Interfacial and surface magnetism in epitaxial NiCo2O4(001)/MgAl2O4 films.
- Author
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Mellinger, Corbyn, Wang, Xiao, Subedi, Arjun, Clark, Andy T., Komesu, Takashi, Rosenberg, Richard, Dowben, Peter A., Cheng, Xuemei, and Xu, Xiaoshan
- Subjects
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MAGNETIC circular dichroism , *MAGNETISM , *PHOTOELECTRON spectroscopy , *MAGNETIC hysteresis , *X-ray absorption , *MAGNETIC properties , *PERPENDICULAR magnetic anisotropy , *PHOTOEMISSION - Abstract
NiCo2O4 (NCO) films grown on MgAl2O4 (001) substrates have been studied using magnetometry and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism based on x-ray absorption spectroscopy and spin-polarized inverse photoemission spectroscopy with various thicknesses down to 1.6 nm. The magnetic behavior can be understood in terms of a layer of optimal NCO and an interfacial layer (1.2 ± 0.1 nm), with a small canting of magnetization at the surface. The thickness dependence of the optimal layer can be described by the finite-scaling theory with a critical exponent consistent with the high perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. The interfacial layer couples antiferromagnetically to the optimal layer, generating exchange-spring styled magnetic hysteresis in the thinnest films. The non-optimal and measurement-speed-dependent magnetic properties of the interfacial layer suggest substantial interfacial diffusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2023
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