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At least 757 records · Page 42

Semiconductor–Ferromagnetic Insulator–Superconductor Nanowires: Stray Field and Exchange Field

Nanowires can serve as flexible substrates for hybrid epitaxial growth on selected facets, allowing for the design of heterostructures with complex material combinations and geometries. In this work we report on hybrid epitaxy of freestanding vapor–liquid–solid grown and in-plane selective area grown semiconductor–ferromagnetic insulator–superconductor (InAs/EuS/Al) nanowire heterostructures. We study the crystal growth and complex epitaxial matching of wurtzite and zinc-blende InAs/rock-salt EuS interfaces as well as rock-salt EuS/face-centered cubic Al interfaces. Because of the magnetic anisotropy originating from the nanowire shape, the magnetic structure of the EuS phase is easily tuned into single magnetic domains. This effect efficiently ejects the stray field lines along the nanowires. With tunnel spectroscopy measurements of the density of states, we show that the material has a hard induced superconducting gap, and magnetic hysteretic evolution which indicates that the magnetic exchange fields are not negligible. These hybrid nanowires fulfill key material requirements for serving as a platform for spin-based quantum applications, such as scalable topological quantum computing.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Spin Transport in Ferromagnet-InSb Nanowire Quantum Devices

Signatures of Majorana zero modes (MZMs), which are the building blocks for fault-tolerant topological quantum computing, have been observed in semiconductor nanowires (NW) with strong spin-orbital-interaction (SOI), such as InSb and InAs NWs with proximity-induced superconductivity. Realizing topological superconductivity and MZMs in this most widely-studied platform also requires eliminating spin degeneracy, which is realized by applying a magnetic field to induce a helical gap. Yet, the applied field can adversely impact the induced superconducting state in the NWs and also places geometric restrictions on the device, which can affect scaling of future MZM-based quantum registers. These challenges could be circumvented by integrating magnetic elements with the NWs. With this motivation, in this work we report the first experimental investigation of spin transport across InSb NWs, which are enabled by devices with ferromagnetic (FM) contacts. We determine signatures of spin polarization and spin-dependent transport in the quasi-one-dimensional ballistic regime. Moreover, we show that electrostatic gating tunes the observed magnetic signal and also reveals a transport regime where the device acts as a spin filter. These results open an avenue towards developing MZM devices in which spin degeneracy is lifted locally, without the need of an applied magnetic field. They further provide a path for realizing spin-based devices that leverage spin-orbital states in quantum wires.

1D ballistic spin transport↗

Crossover from 2D Ferromagnetic Insulator to Wide Band Gap Quantum Anomalous Hall Insulator in Ultrathin MnBi 2 Te 4

Intrinsic magnetic topological insulators offer low disorder and large magnetic band gaps for robust magnetic topological phases operating at higher temperatures. By controlling the layer thickness, emergent phenomena such as the quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) effect and axion insulator phases have been realized. Furthermore, these observations occur at temperatures significantly lower than the Néel temperature of bulk MnBi 2 Te 4 , and measurement of the magnetic energy gap at the Dirac point in ultrathin MnBi 2 Te 4 has yet to be achieved. Critical to achieving the promise of this system is a direct measurement of the layer-dependent energy gap and verification of a temperature-dependent topological phase transition from a large band gap QAH insulator to a gapless TI paramagnetic phase. Here we utilize temperature-dependent angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to study epitaxial ultrathin MnBi 2 Te 4 . We directly observe a layer-dependent crossover from a 2D ferromagnetic insulator with a band gap greater than 780 meV in one septuple layer (1 SL) to a QAH insulator with a large energy gap (>70 meV) at 8 K in 3 and 5 SL MnBi 2 Te 4 . The QAH gap is confirmed to be magnetic in origin, as it becomes gapless with increasing temperature above 8 K.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Magnetic excitations and absence of charge order in the van der Waals ferromagnet Fe 4.75 GeTe 2

Understanding the ground state of van der Waals (vdW) magnets is crucial for designing devices leveraging these platforms. Here, we investigate the magnetic excitations and charge order in Fe 4.75 GeTe 2 , a vdW ferromagnet with ≈ 315 K Curie temperature. Using Fe L 3 -edge resonant inelastic X-ray scattering, we observe a dual nature of magnetic excitations, comprising a coherent magnon and a broad non-dispersive continuum extending up to 150 meV, 50% higher than in Fe 2.72 GeTe 2 . The continuum intensity is sinusoidally modulated along the stacking direction L, with a period matching the inter-slab distance. Our results indicate that while the dual character of the magnetic excitations is generic to Fe-Ge-Te vdW magnets, Fe 4.75 GeTe 2 exhibits a longer out-of-plane magnetic correlation length, suggesting enhanced 3D magnetic character. Furthermore, resonant X-ray diffraction reveals that previously reported ±(1/3, 1/3, L) peaks originate from crystal structure rather than from charge order.

Ferromagnetism↗

Bloch ferromagnetism of composite fermions

In 1929, Felix Bloch suggested that the paramagnetic Fermi sea of electrons should make a spontaneous transition to a fully magnetized state at very low densities, because the exchange energy gained by aligning the spins exceeds the enhancement in the kinetic energy. However, experimental realizations of this effect have been hard to implement. In this work, we report the observation of an abrupt, interaction-driven transition to full magnetization, highly reminiscent of Bloch ferromagnetism. Our platform utilizes the two-dimensional Fermi sea of composite fermions near half-filling of the lowest Landau level. We measure the Fermi wavevector—which directly provides the spin polarization—and observe a sudden transition from a partially spin-polarized to a fully spin-polarized ground state as we lower the density of the composite fermions. Our theoretical calculations that take Landau level mixing into account provide a semi-quantitative account of this phenomenon.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Tunable correlated Chern insulator and ferromagnetism in a moiré superlattice

Studies of two-dimensional electron systems in a strong magnetic field revealed the quantum Hall effect, a topological state of matter featuring a finite Chern number C and chiral edge states. Haldane later theorized that Chern insulators with integer quantum Hall effects could appear in lattice models with complex hopping parameters even at zero magnetic field. The ABC-trilayer graphene/hexagonal boron nitride (ABC-TLG/hBN) moiré superlattice provides an attractive platform with which to explore Chern insulators because it features nearly flat moiré minibands with a valley-dependent, electrically tunable Chern number. In this work, we report the experimental observation of a correlated Chern insulator in an ABC-TLG/hBN moiré superlattice. We show that reversing the direction of the applied vertical electric field switches the moiré minibands of ABC-TLG/hBN between zero and finite Chern numbers, as revealed by large changes in magneto-transport behaviour. For topological hole minibands tuned to have a finite Chern number, we focus on quarter filling, corresponding to one hole per moiré unit cell. The Hall resistance is well quantized at h/2e 2 (where h is Planck’s constant and e is the charge on the electron), which implies C = 2, for a magnetic field exceeding 0.4 tesla. The correlated Chern insulator is ferromagnetic, exhibiting substantial magnetic hysteresis and a large anomalous Hall signal at zero magnetic field. Finally, our discovery of a C = 2 Chern insulator at zero magnetic field should open up opportunities for discovering correlated topological states, possibly with topological excitations, in nearly flat and topologically nontrivial moiré minibands.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Oxygen-Vacancy-Induced Antiferromagnetism to Ferromagnetism Transformation in Eu 0.5 Ba 0.5 TiO 3–δ Multiferroic Thin Films

Oxygen vacancies (VO) effects on magnetic ordering in Eu 0.5 Ba 0.5 TiO 3–δ (EBTO 3–δ ) thin films have been investigated using a combination of experimental measurements and first-principles density-functional calculations. Two kinds of EBTO 3–δ thin films with different oxygen deficiency have been fabricated. A nuclear resonance backscattering spectrometry technique has been used to quantitatively measure contents of the V O . Eu 0.5 Ba 0.5 TiO 3 ceramics have been known to exhibit ferroelectric (FE) and G-type antiferromagnetic (AFM) properties. While, a ferromagnetic (FM) behavior with a Curie temperature of 1.85 K has been found in the EBTO 3–δ thin films. Spin-polarized Ti 3+ ions, which originated from the V O , has been proven to mediate a FM coupling between the local Eu 4ƒ spins and were believed to be responsible for the great change of the magnetic ordering. Considering the easy formation of V O , our work opens up a new avenue for achieving co-existence of FM and FE orders in oxide materials.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Domain engineering of the metastable domains in the 4f-uniaxial-ferromagnet CeRu 2 Ga 2 B

In search of novel, improved materials for magnetic data storage and spintronic devices, compounds that allow a tailoring of magnetic domain shapes and sizes are essential. Good candidates are materials with intrinsic anisotropies or competing interactions, as they are prone to host various domain phases that can be easily and precisely selected by external tuning parameters such as temperature and magnetic field. Here, we utilize vector magnetic fields to visualize directly the magnetic anisotropy in the uniaxial ferromagnet CeRu 2 Ga 2 B. We demonstrate a feasible control both globally and locally of domain shapes and sizes by the external field as well as a smooth transition from single stripe to bubble domains, which opens the door to future applications based on magnetic domain tailoring.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Investigation of ZnO thin films deposited on ferromagnetic metallic buffer layer by molecular beam epitaxy toward realization of ZnO-based magnetic tunneling junctions

Deposition of ZnO thin films on a ferromagnetic metallic buffer layer (Co{sub 3}Pt) by molecular beam epitaxy technique was investigated for realization of ZnO-based magnetic tunneling junctions with good quality hexagonal ZnO films as tunnel barriers. For substrate temperature of 600 Degree-Sign C, ZnO films exhibited low oxygen defects and high electrical resistivity of 130 {Omega} cm. This value exceeded that of hexagonal ZnO films grown by sputtering technique, which are used as tunnel barriers in ZnO-MTJs. Also, the effect of oxygen flow during deposition on epitaxial growth conditions and Co{sub 3}Pt surface oxidation was discussed.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Direct synthesis of large size ferromagnetic SmCo{sub 5} nanoparticles by a gas-phase condensation method

Ferromagnetic SmCo{sub 5} nanoparticles with large size have been directly synthesized by a magnetron-sputtering-based gas-phase condensation method. Based on this method, we studied the effect of thermodynamic environment for the growth of SmCo{sub 5} nanoparticles. It was found that the well-crystallized SmCo{sub 5} nanoparticle tends to form a hexagonal disk shape with its easy axis perpendicular to the disk plane. More importantly, under the condition of high sputtering current, well-crystallized nanoparticles were found to be formed through a three-stage growth process: aggregation, coalescence, and second crystallization.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗

Ferromagnetic (Ga,Mn)As nanowires grown by Mn-assisted molecular beam epitaxy

(Ga,Mn)As nanowires were grown by molecular beam epitaxy using Mn as a growth catalyst on GaAs(001) substrates at 485 Degree-Sign C, i.e., at intermediate temperatures higher than ones used for the growth of (Ga,Mn)As thin films, but lower than the ordinary temperatures of Au-assisted growth of GaAs nanowires. (Ga,Mn)As nanowires obtained with typical lengths between 0.8 and 4 {mu}m and diameters 50-90 nm do not have defects, such as dislocations or precipitates, except for the stacking faults lying parallel to the growth direction. The investigation of magnetic and optical properties has been carried out not only for as-grown samples with nanowires but also for peeled off nanowires from the host substrate. The results obtained demonstrate that (Ga,Mn)As nanowires exhibit ferromagnetic ordering around 70 K.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Spark-plasma-sintering magnetic field assisted compaction of Co{sub 80}Ni{sub 20} nanowires for anisotropic ferromagnetic bulk materials

We developed a two-step process showing the way for sintering anisotropic nanostructured bulk ferromagnetic materials. A new reactor has been optimized allowing the synthesis of several grams per batch of nanopowders via a polyol soft chemistry route. The feasibility of the scale-up has been successfully demonstrated for Co{sub 80}Ni{sub 20} nanowires and a massic yield of ∼97% was obtained. The thus obtained nanowires show an average diameter of ∼6 nm and a length of ∼270 nm. A new bottom-up strategy allowed us to compact the powder into a bulk nanostructured system. We used a spark-plasma-sintering technique under uniaxial compression and low temperature assisted by a permanent magnetic field of 1 T. A macroscopic pellet of partially aligned nanowire arrays has been easily obtained. This showed optimized coercive properties along the direction of the magnetic field applied during compaction (i.e., the nanowires' direction)

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Spin transport in normal metal/insulator/topological insulator coupled to ferromagnetic insulator structures

In this study, we investigate the spin transport in normal metal (NM)/insulator (I)/topological insulator (TI) coupled to ferromagnetic insulator (FI) structures. In particular, we focus on the barrier thickness dependence of the spin transport inside the bulk gap of the TI with FI. The TI with FI is described by two-dimensional (2D) Dirac Hamiltonian. The energy profile of the insulator is assumed to be a square with barrier height V and thickness d along the transport-direction. This structure behaves as a tunnel device for 2D Dirac electrons. The calculation is performed for the spin conductance with changing the barrier thickness and the components of magnetization of FI layer. It is found that the spin conductance decreases with increasing the barrier thickness. Also, the spin conductance is strongly dependent on the polar angle θ, which is defined as the angle between the axis normal to the FI and the magnetization of FI layer. These results indicate that the structures are promising candidates for novel tunneling magnetoresistance devices.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Effect of Sb incorporation on structure and magnetic properties of quaternary ferromagnetic semiconductor (Ga, Mn)(As, Sb) thin films

GaAs-based quaternary ferromagnetic semiconductor (Ga, Mn)(As, Sb) has been successfully prepared by molecular-beam epitaxy. High-resolution x-ray diffraction measurements indicate that the lattice constant has a notable alteration with changing Sb content. Magnetic measurements demonstrate the same evolution of the Curie temperature T{sub C} and the effective Mn content x{sub eff} with increasing Sb content. The incorporation of low Sb content is of benefit to increasing x{sub eff}, thus, increasing T{sub C}. However, higher Sb content degrades the crystal quality, resulting in a decrease of x{sub eff}. Experimental results show that T{sub C} is proportional to the product of x{sub eff} and p{sup 1/3}, which is consistent with the Zener Model. The exchange energy N{sub 0}β is calculated to be −1.09 eV, which is similar to that of (Ga, Mn)As.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Magnetic and microwave properties of U-type hexaferrite films with high remanence and low ferromagnetic resonance linewidth

U-type barium hexaferrite films (Ba{sub 4}Ni{sub 1.4}Co{sub 0.6}Fe{sub 36}O{sub 60}) were deposited on (0001) sapphire substrates by pulsed laser deposition. Microstructure and magnetic properties of the films were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and vibrating sample magnetometry. Ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) measurements were performed at X-band. The results indicate an anisotropy field of ∼8 kOe, and the saturation magnetization (4πM{sub s}) of ∼3.6 kG. An optimal post-deposition annealing of films results in a strong (0 0 n) crystallographic texture and a high hysteresis loop squareness (M{sub r}/M{sub s} = 92%) leading to self biased properties. Furthermore, the highly self-biased ferrite films exhibited an FMR linewidth of ∼200 Oe. The U-type hexaferrite films having low microwave loss, low magnetic anisotropy field, and high squareness are a suitable alternative to Sc or In doped BaM ferrites that have been the choice material for self-biased microwave devices at X-band frequencies.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Enhanced ferromagnetic properties in Ho and Ni co-doped BiFeO{sub 3} ceramics

The magnetic properties of polycrystalline Bi{sub 1-x}Ho{sub x}Fe{sub 1-y}Ni{sub y}O{sub 3} (x = 0, 0.1; y = 0, 0.03), which were prepared by the solid-state method, have been investigated. The powder X-ray diffraction reveals that all the samples are polycrystalline and show rhombohedral perovskite structure. The micro-Raman scattering studies confirm that Bi{sub 0.9}Ho{sub 0.1}Fe{sub 0.97}Ni{sub 0.03}O{sub 3} has a compressive lattice distortion induced by the simultaneous substitution of Ho and Ni ions at A and B-sites, respectively. From the magnetization dependences at room temperature, Bi{sub 0.9}Ho{sub 0.1}Fe{sub 0.97}Ni{sub 0.03}O{sub 3} has enhanced magnetization (0.2280 emu/g) and low coercive field (280 Oe). It was revealed that the Ni dopant plays an important role for the improved ferromagnetic properties and the Ho dopant favors the magnetic exchange interactions in the co-doped ceramic.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Critical behavior of the ferromagnetic-paramagnetic phase transition in Fe{sub 90−x}Ni{sub x}Zr{sub 10} alloy ribbons

This work presents a detailed study on the critical behavior of the ferromagnetic-paramagnetic (FM-PM) phase transition in Fe{sub 90−x}Ni{sub x}Zr{sub 10} (x = 0 and 5) alloy ribbons. Basing on field dependences of magnetization (M-H), M{sup 2} versus H/M plots prove the alloys exhibiting a second-order magnetic phase transition. To investigate the nature of the FM-PM phase transition at T{sub C} = 245 and 306 K for x = 0 and 5, respectively, we performed a critical-exponent study. The values of critical components β, γ, and δ determined by using the modified Arrott plots, Kouvel-Fisher (KF), and critical isotherm analyses agree with each other. For x = 0, the critical parameters β = 0.365 ± 0.013 and γ = 1.615 ± 0.033 are obtained by modified Arrott plots while β = 0.368 ± 0.008 and γ = 1.612 ± 0.016 are obtained by the KF method. These values are close to those expected for the 3D-Heisenberg model, revealing short-range FM interactions in Fe{sub 90}Zr{sub 10}. Meanwhile, for x = 5, the values of the critical parameters β = 0.423 ± 0.008 and γ = 1.325 ± 0.036 are obtained by modified Arrott plots, and β = 0.425 ± 0.006 and γ = 1.323 ± 0.012 are obtained by the KF method. The falling of the β value in between the values of the mean-field theory (β = 0.5) and the 3D-Heisenberg model (β = 0.365) indicates an existence of FM short-range order and magnetic inhomogeneity in Fe{sub 85}Ni{sub 5}Zr{sub 10}. With a partial replacement of Ni for Fe in Fe{sub 90−x}Ni{sub x}Zr{sub 10}, the value of the critical exponent β trends to shift towards that of the mean-field theory. Such the result proves the presence of Ni favors establishing FM long-range order. The nature of this phenomenon is carefully discussed.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Influence of the interface on the magnetic properties of ferromagnetic ultrathin films with various adjacent copper thicknesses

The interface and magnetic properties of two series of films with Ta(5 nm)/Fe{sub 20}Ni{sub 80}Nd{sub 0.017}(3 nm)/Cu(t nm) and Ta(5 nm)/Cu(t nm)/Fe{sub 50}Co{sub 50}Gd{sub 0.07}(3 nm)/Cu(2 nm) structures have been investigated by atomic force microscopy, vibrating sample magnetometer, and ferromagnetic resonance (FMR). The roughness of all films increases with increasing copper thickness, which causes the different grain sizes in the surface of films. The coercivity of FeCo-Gd films increases with increasing thickness of inserted Cu layer while decreases with increasing thickness of Cu capping layer for FeNi-Nd films. FMR linewidth exhibits huge dependence on the thickness of inserted Cu layer for FeCo-Gd films, increasing from 2270 to 3680 Oe, which comes from the additional contribution of effect of the two-magnon scattering. And the thickness of Cu capping layer shows also an influence on FMR linewidth of FeNi-Nd films, increasing from 190 to 320 Oe, which mainly comes from intrinsic FMR linewidth and plus minor inhomogeneous broadening. All of these extrinsic linewidth broadening are related to the interface roughness.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗