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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 109 records · Page 6
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Light-induced ultrafast spin transport in multilayer metallic films originates from sp-d spin exchange coupling

Ultrafast interaction between the femtosecond laser pulse and the magnetic metal provides an efficient way to manipulate the magnetic states of matter. Numerous experimental advancements have been made on multilayer metallic films in the last two decades. However, the underlying physics remains unclear. Here, relying on an efficient ab initio spin dynamics simulation algorithm, we revealed the physics that can unify the progress in different experiments. We found that light-induced ultrafast spin transport in multilayer metallic films originates from the sp - d spin-exchange interaction, which can induce an ultrafast, large, and pure spin current from ferromagnetic metal to nonmagnetic metal without charge carrier transport. The resulting trends of spin demagnetization and spin flow are consistent with most experiments. It can explain a variety of ultrafast light-spin manipulation experiments with different systems and different pump-probe technologies, covering a wide range of work in this field.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Observation of the Fluctuation Spin Hall Effect in a Low-Resistivity Antiferromagnet

The spin Hall effect (SHE) can generate a pure spin current by an electric current, which is promisingly used to electrically control magnetization. To reduce the power consumption of this control, a giant spin Hall angle (SHA) in the SHE is desired in low-resistivity systems for practical applications. Here, critical spin fluctuation near the antiferromagnetic (AFM) phase transition in chromium (Cr) is proven to be an effective mechanism for creating an additional part of the SHE, named the fluctuation spin Hall effect. Further, the SHA is significantly enhanced when the temperature approaches the Néel temperature (T N ) of Cr and has a peak value of -0.36 near T N . This value is higher than the room-temperature value by 153% and leads to a low normalized power consumption among known spin–orbit torque materials. This study demonstrates the critical spin fluctuation as a prospective way to increase the SHA and enriches the AFM material candidates for spin–orbitronic devices.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2026

Current-Driven Symmetry Breaking and Spin–Orbit Polarization in Chiral Wires

The spin dynamics of electrons in chiral molecular systems remains a topic of intense interest, particularly regarding whether geometric chirality inherently induces spin polarization in current-carrying electrons. In this work, we employ ab initio real-time time-dependent density functional theory (rt-TDDFT) to directly simulate the interplay among charge current, spin, and orbital. This realtime tracking extends beyond perturbative treatments, and we analyze how nonequilibrium currents effectively lift the symmetry constraints of screw rotation and time-reversal symmetry. We find that the emergence of spin and orbital angular momenta is dynamically correlated with a concomitant loss of translational (linear) momentum, which we interpret as an intrinsic consequence of current-driven symmetry lowering. The implications of this mechanism for chirality-induced spin selectivity and spintronics device design are discussed.

chiral wire↗
DOE OSTI2023

Field-free spin-orbit torque switching assisted by in-plane unconventional spin torque in ultrathin [Pt/Co] N

Electrical manipulation of magnetization without an external magnetic field is critical for the development of advanced non-volatile magnetic-memory technology that can achieve high memory density and low energy consumption. Several recent studies have revealed efficient out-of-plane spin-orbit torques (SOTs) in a variety of materials for field-free type-z SOT switching. Here, we report on the corresponding type-x configuration, showing significant in-plane unconventional spin polarizations from sputtered ultrathin [Pt/Co] N , which are either highly textured on single crystalline MgO substrates or randomly textured on SiO 2 coated Si substrates. The unconventional spin currents generated in the low-dimensional Co films result from the strong orbital magnetic moment, which has been observed by X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) measurement. The x-polarized spin torque efficiency reaches up to −0.083 and favors complete field-free switching of CoFeB magnetized along the in-plane charge current direction. Micromagnetic simulations additionally demonstrate its lower switching current than type-y switching, especially in narrow current pulses. Our work provides additional pathways for electrical manipulation of spintronic devices in the pursuit of high-speed, high-density, and low-energy non-volatile memory.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

“Magic” Orientation Angles to Suppress Spin-Driven Hall Currents in Anisotropic 2D Materials with an Ideal Skyrmion Gas

The Hall effect depending on conduction electron spin projection becomes very different for anisotropic 2D crystals. In this case the spin-dependent electron current strongly determined by the orientation angle, θ, of the sample with respect to an applied electric eld. The spin-up and -down components of the direct and Hall charge currents oscillate with the angle 2θ. The direct and Hall components of the current have the structure where there are the angle-independent part, oscillation amplitude, and phase shift. All three quantitates strongly depend on the electron spin projection, electron mass ratio, and skyrmion size. We nd that there are "magic" orientation angles where the spin-up, spin-down, and total Hall currents vanish. There is a great interest in computations based on 2D materials with skyrmions. Such properties can be useful for computer logic operations based on skyrmions.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2020

Electrical control of coherent spin rotation of a single-spin qubit

Nitrogen vacancy (NV) centers, optically active atomic defects in diamond, have attracted tremendous interest for quantum sensing, network, and computing applications due to their excellent quantum coherence and remarkable versatility in a real, ambient environment. One of the critical challenges to develop NV-based quantum operation platforms results from the difficulty in locally addressing the quantum spin states of individual NV spins in a scalable, energy-efficient manner. Here, we report electrical control of the coherent spin rotation rate of a single-spin qubit in NV-magnet based hybrid quantum systems. By utilizing electrically generated spin currents, we are able to achieve efficient tuning of magnetic damping and the amplitude of the dipole fields generated by a micrometer-sized resonant magnet, enabling electrical control of the Rabi oscillation frequency of NV spins. Our results highlight the potential of NV centers in designing functional hybrid solid-state systems for next-generation quantum-information technologies. The demonstrated coupling between the NV centers and the propagating spin waves harbored by a magnetic insulator further points to the possibility to establish macroscale entanglement between distant spin qubits.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2020

Temperature dependent inverse spin Hall effect in Co/Pt spintronic emitters

In bilayers of ferromagnets and heavy metals, which form the so-called spintronic emitters, the phenomena of ultrafast demagnetization and the inverse spin Hall effect (ISHE) conspire to yield remarkably efficient emission of electric pulses in the THz band. Light-induced demagnetization of the ferromagnet launches a pulse of spin current into the heavy metal, wherein it bifurcates into a radiative charge transient due to the ISHE. The influence of temperature on this combined effect should depend on both the magnetic phase diagram and the microscopic origin of spin Hall conductivity, but its exact dependence remains to be clarified. Here, we experimentally study the temperature dependence of an archetypal spintronic emitter, the Co/Pt bilayer, using electro-optic sampling of the emitted THz pulses in the time domain. The emission amplitude is attenuated with decreasing temperature, consistent with an inverse spin Hall effect in platinum of predominantly intrinsic origin.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2021

Magnetic excitations of the hybrid multiferroic (ND 4 ) 2 FeCl 5 ·D 2 O

We report a comprehensive inelastic neutron scattering study of the hybrid molecule-based multiferroic compound ( ND 4 ) 2 FeCl 5 · D 2 O in the zero-field incommensurate cycloidal phase and the high-field quasicollinear phase. The spontaneous electric polarization changes its direction concurrently with the field-induced magnetic transition, from mostly aligned with the crystallographic a axis to the c axis. To account for such a change in polarization direction, the underlying multiferroic mechanism was proposed to switch from the spin-current model induced via the inverse Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction to the p - d hybridization model. We perform a detailed analysis of the inelastic neutron data of ( ND 4 ) 2 FeCl 5 · D 2 O using linear spin-wave theory to quantify magnetic interaction strengths and investigate the possible impact of different multiferroic mechanisms on the magnetic couplings. Overall our result reveals that the spin dynamics of both multiferroic phases can be well described by a Heisenberg Hamiltonian with easy-plane anisotropy. We do not find notable differences between the optimal model parameters of the two phases. The hierarchy of exchange couplings and the balance among frustrated interactions remain the same between two phases, suggesting that magnetic interactions in ( ND 4 ) 2 FeCl 5 · D 2 O are much more robust than the electric polarization in response to delicate reorganizations of the electronic degrees of freedom in an applied magnetic field.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2022

Easy-plane spin Hall nano-oscillators as spiking neurons for neuromorphic computing

Here we show analytically using a macrospin approximation that easy-plane spin Hall nano-oscillators excited by a spin current polarized perpendicularly to the easy plane have phase dynamics analogous to that of Josephson junctions. Similarly to Josephson junctions, they can reproduce the spiking behavior of biological neurons that is appropriate for neuromorphic computing. To take advantage of typical spin-orbit torques, we use a nanoconstriction geometry, in which the magnetostatic interaction and magnetocrystalline anisotropy are tuned to create an easy plane that includes the interface normal direction. We perform micromagnetic simulations of such oscillators realized in this geometry and show that the easy-plane spiking dynamics is preserved in this experimentally feasible architecture. Finally we simulate two elementary neural network blocks that implement operations essential for neuromorphic computing. First, we show that output spikes energies from two neurons can be summed and injected into a following layer neuron and second, we demonstrate that outputs can be multiplied by synaptic weights implemented by locally modifying the anisotropy.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Evidence for spin swapping in an antiferromagnet

Antiferromagnetic insulators offer strategic advantages in spintronic applications because of their negligible stray fields and ultrafast magnetic dynamics. Control of their magnetization and readout of their magnetic state are essential for these applications but remain challenging. In this work, we report the electrical detection of room-temperature magnetization switching in the canted antiferromagnetic insulator LaFeO 3 , capped with a Pt or W overlayer. The observation of a large magneto-thermovoltage with an in-plane temperature gradient suggests that the mechanism is the swapping of spin currents in the antiferromagnet. This effect provides a sensitive electrical probe of the tiny net magnetization in the insulator, which can be manipulated by a magnetic field on the order of 10 mT. Our results highlight a new material class of insulating canted antiferromagnets for spintronics and spin caloritronics and suggests a method for the electrical readout of magnetic signals in an antiferromagnetic insulator. Electrical readout of the state of an antiferromagnet is an important goal for spintronic applications. Now, detection of the electrical voltage created by a thermal gradient in a canted antiferromagnet suggests a route for achieving this goal.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Chiral topologically ordered insulating phases in arrays of interacting integer quantum Hall islands

Here, we study networks of Coulomb-blockaded integer quantum Hall islands with even fillings ν = 2 k ( k being an integer), including cases with 2 k layers each of ν = 1 fillings. Allowing only spin-current interactions between the islands (i.e., without any charge transfer), we obtain solvable models leading to a rich set of insulating S U ( 2 ) k topologically ordered phases. The case with k = 1 is dual to the Kalmeyer-Laughlin phase, k = 2 to Kitaev's chiral spin liquid and the Moore-Read state, and k = 3 contains a Fibonacci anyon that may be utilized for universal topological quantum computation. Additionally, we show how the S U ( 2 ) k topological phases may be obtained also in an array of islands with ν = 2 k integer quantum Hall states and critical spin chains in a checkerboard pattern. The array and checkerboard constructions gap out the charge mode and additional “flavor” modes by virtue of their geometry. Furthermore, we find that a fine tuning of the system parameter is not needed in the checkerboard configuration and the ν = 2 case. We also discuss their bulk excitations, and show that their thermal Hall conductance is universal, reflecting the central charge c = 3 k / ( k + 2 ) of the chiral edge modes.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2023

Quantum spin helices more stable than the ground state: Onset of helical protection

Topological magnetic structures are promising candidates for resilient information storage. An elementary example is spin helices in one-dimensional easy-plane quantum magnets. To quantify their stability, we numerically implement the stochastic Schrödinger equation and time-dependent perturbation theory for spin chains with fluctuating local magnetic fields. Here, we find two classes of quantum spin helices that can reach and even exceed ground-state stability: spin-current-maximizing helices and, for fine-tuned boundary conditions, the recently discovered “phantom helices.” Beyond that, we show that the helicity itself (left or right rotating) is even more stable. We explain these findings by separated helical sectors and connect them to topological sectors in continuous spin systems. The resulting helical protection mechanism is a promising phenomenon for stabilizing helical quantum structures, e.g., in ultracold atoms and solid-state systems. We also identify a third type of phantom helix in the system.

1-dimensional spin chains↗
DOE OSTI2021

One-directional polarization transport in electron/nuclear spin chains with loss and gain

Understanding the joint dynamics of electron and nuclear spins is central to core concepts in solid-state magnetic resonance such as spin-lattice relaxation and dynamic nuclear polarization, but a generalization that capitalizes on competing polarization loss and gain channels is still lacking. Here, we study theoretically the non-Hermitian dynamics of hybrid electron/nuclear spin systems in the simultaneous presence of electron spin pumping and spin-lattice relaxation. Focusing on periodic, one-dimensional chains, we find that, by adjusting the electron spin pumping to a critical level, it is possible to steer the flow of nuclear polarization to create site-dependent distributions where either end of the array polarizes in opposite ways, irrespective of the initial state. By contrast, we show that ring-like patterns—where the limit nuclear polarization is uniform—exhibit a non-decaying, externally driven nuclear spin current. Interestingly, cyclic magnetic field modulation can render these processes largely robust to defects in the chain, a response featuring some interesting similarities—and differences—with recent findings in other non-Hermitian physical platforms.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Interface-Driven Chiral Magnetism in Ultrathin Metallic Ferromagnets: Towards Skyrmion Spintronics

Magnetic skyrmions are localized chiral magnetic textures in the form of nanoscale vortices or bubbles that are topologically protected from being ‘unwound’. Their topological nature gives rise to rich behaviors including ordered lattice formation, emergent electrodynamics and robust current-driven displacement at remarkably low current densities. However, magnetic skyrmions have so far been restricted to just a few materials and observed only at low temperatures, limiting the experimental accessibility and technological application of these unique topological objects. This project aimed to realize magnetic skyrmions at room temperature in a new class of engineered chiral ferromagnets that exploit broken mirror symmetry at interfaces to generate helical magnetic order. Ultrathin magnetic heterostructures were engineered and patterned into laterally-confined nanostructures in which skyrmions were stabilized, manipulated, and detected for the first time under ambient conditions. Static and dynamic properties were examined using advanced x-ray imaging to provide a fundamental understanding of topological magnetic phases. The interactions between magnetic skyrmions and electron charge and spin currents were studied to identify fundamental new physics and enable device applications. These experimental studies, supported by detailed modeling, will help launch a new subfield of skyrmion-based spintronics in which individual skyrmions can be used to encode, store, and transport information in high-performance, low power memory and logic devices.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Dynamics of metastable contact soliton dissipative exchange flows in one-dimensional ferromagnetic channels

Dissipative exchange flows (DEFs) are large-amplitude boundary value solutions of ferromagnetic channels. In their low-injection limit, DEFs reduce to spin superfluids. However, in the strong injection limit, nonlinearities dominate close to the injection site and a soliton is formed; this solution has been termed a contact soliton dissipative exchange flow (CS-DEF). Here, in this work, we numerically investigate CS-DEF solutions in a moderate injection regime and a finite injection width. We find a solution where two metastable solitons coexist in the injection region. This solution is metastable in the sense that any perturbation to the system will eject one of the solitons out of the injection region. Moreover, soliton dynamics can be excited when two injection regions are separated by a certain distance. We find that the ensuing DEF between the solitons induces a steady-state dynamics in which metastable solitons are continually ejected and nucleated. Furthermore, and depending on the relative signs of the spin injections, the soliton dynamics possess a particular handedness and frequency related to the spin transfer torque delivered by the DEF. Our results provide insights into the transport of spin current by DEFs - where the interaction between DEFs and solitons suggests a mechanism for detaching contact-solitons from the injection boundary. Although this study focuses on the "nonlocal" interaction between solitons, it may lead to the investigation of new mechanisms for inserting solitons in a DEF, e.g., for discrete motion and transport of information over long distances.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2026

Observation of Switchable Chiral Magnons in an Altermagnet

Chiral magnons, the quanta of handed spin waves, transport spin angular momentum without energy loss due to Joule heating. Here, the recently discovered altermagnets were proposed to host chiral magnons arising from a nonrelativistic exchange mechanism, similar to that in ferromagnets but without net magnetization, offering a stray-field-free platform for efficient magnon spin-current manipulation. In this Letter, we directly observed chiral magnons in the altermagnetic prototype MnTe using polarized inelastic neutron scattering. Furthermore, the magnon chirality was found to be reversibly switched by magnetic-field control, establishing a robust foundation for functional altermagnetic magnonics.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2021

RKKY Exchange Bias Mediated Ultrafast All-Optical Switching of a Ferromagnet

The discovery of ultrafast helicity-independent all-optical switching (HI-AOS), as well as picosecond all-electrical switching of a ferrimagnet, has inspired the ultrafast spintronics community to explore ultrafast switching of a ferromagnet to achieve practical ultrafast storage and memory devices. Two explored mechanisms of HI-AOS of a ferromagnet in ferromagnet-ferrimagnet heterostructure are: a) exploiting the indirect exchange coupling with and b) injection of non-local spin current originated from a switching ferrimagnet. Here, in this manuscript, exchange mediated HI-AOS of a Ruderman–Kittel–Kasuya–Yosida (RKKY) exchange coupled “[Co/Pt]-multilayers/Pt spacer/CoGd” heterostructure is demonstrated. The authors have measured layer-resolved static magnetic properties, single-shot HI-AOS, and magnetization dynamics of the ferromagnetic Co/Pt multilayers (MLs), that are ferromagnetically or antiferromagnetically coupled with ferrimagnetic CoGd layers. Time-resolved magnetization dynamics reveal a 3.5 ps switching time of the Co/Pt MLs, which is the fastest switching of a ferromagnet reported to date. Employing an extended microscopic three-temperature model, the temporal dynamics of the exchange coupled ferromagnet–ferrimagnet heterostructure are simulated, qualitatively and quantitatively explaining the experimental switching phenomena. This work experimentally as well as theoretically establishes the mechanism of exchange mediated all-optical switching of ferromagnet-ferrimagnet heterostructures, which can be integrated with a magnetic tunnel junction for efficient reading after ultrafast energy-efficient switching.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

High‐Efficiency Magnon‐Mediated Magnetization Switching in All‐Oxide Heterostructures with Perpendicular Magnetic Anisotropy

Abstract The search for efficient approaches to realize local switching of magnetic moments in spintronic devices has attracted extensive attention. One of the most promising approaches is the electrical manipulation of magnetization through electron‐mediated spin torque. However, the Joule heat generated via electron motion unavoidably causes substantial energy dissipation and potential damage to spintronic devices. Here, all‐oxide heterostructures of SrRuO 3 /NiO/SrIrO 3 are epitaxially grown on SrTiO 3 single‐crystal substrates following the order of the ferromagnetic transition metal oxide SrRuO 3 with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, insulating and antiferromagnetic NiO, and metallic transition metal oxide SrIrO 3 with strong spin–orbit coupling. It is demonstrated that instead of the electron spin torques, the magnon torques present in the antiferromagnetic NiO layer can directly manipulate the perpendicular magnetization of the ferromagnetic layer. This magnon mechanism may significantly reduce the electron motion‐related energy dissipation from electron‐mediated spin currents. Interestingly, the threshold current density to generate a sufficient magnon current to manipulate the magnetization is one order of magnitude smaller than that in conventional metallic systems. These findings suggest a route for developing highly efficient all‐oxide spintronic devices operated by magnon current.

Zheng, Dongxing↗