Spin Dynamics And Damping In Ferromagnetic Thin Films And Nanostructures

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the latest developments in the field of spin dynamics and magnetic damping. It discusses the various ways to tune damping, specifically, dynamic and static control in a ferromagnetic layer/heavy metal layer. In addition, it addresses all optical detection techniques for the investigation of modulation of damping, for example, the time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect technique.

This second volume of the book on spin dynamics in confined magnetic structures covers central aspects of spin dynamic phenomena, so that researchers can find a comprehensive compilation of the current work in the field. Introductory chapters help newcomers to understand the basic concepts, and the more advanced chapters give the current state of the art for most spin dynamic issues in the milliseconds to femtoseconds range. Both experimental techniques and theoretical work are discussed. The comprehensive presentation of these developments makes this volume very timely and valuable for every researcher working in the field of magnetism. It describes the new experimental techniques which have advanced this field very rapidly. Among the techniques covered, particular attention is given to those involving high temporal, elemental and spatial resolution as well as to techniques involving magnetic field pulses with very short rise times and durations.

Nanomagnetism and spintronics is a rapidly expanding and increasingly important field of research with many applications already on the market and many more to be expected in the near future. This field started in the mid-1980s with the discovery of the GMR effect, recently awarded with the Nobel prize to Albert Fert and Peter Grünberg. The present volume covers the most important and most timely aspects of magnetic heterostructures, including spin torque effects, spin injection, spin transport, spin fluctuations, proximity effects, and electrical control of spin valves. The chapters are written by internationally recognized experts in their respective fields and provide an overview of the latest status.

Introductory chapters help newcomers to understand the basic concepts, and the more advanced chapters give the current state of the art for most spin dynamic issues in the milliseconds to femtoseconds range. Emphasis is placed on both the discussion of the experimental techniques and on the theoretical work. The comprehensive presentation of these developments makes this volume very timely and valuable for every researcher working in the field of magnetism.

Several large experimental facilities that focus on detection and probing magnetization dynamics have been realized in Europe, USA and Japan. This book covers theoretical and practical aspects of the vibrant and emerging research field of magnetization dynamics.

In this thesis we focus on the theoritical description and on the numerical simulation of the charge and spin dynamics in metallic nano-structures. The physics of metallic nano-structures has stimulated a huge amount of scientific interest in the last two decades, both for fundamental research and for potential technological applications. The thesis is divided in two parts. In the first part we use a semiclassical phase-space model to study the ultrafast charge and spin dynamics in thin ferromagnetic films (Nickel). Both itinerant and localized magnetism are taken into account. It is shown that an oscillating spin current can be generated in the film via the application of a femtosecond laser pulse in the visible range. In the second part we focus on the charge dynamics of electrons confined in metallic nano-particles (Gold) or anisotropic wells. We show that such systems can be used for high harmonic generation.

In the past several decades, the research on spin transport and magnetism has led to remarkable scientific and technological breakthroughs, including Albert Fert and Peter Grünberg’s Nobel Prize-winning discovery of giant magnetoresistance (GMR) in magnetic metallic multilayers. Handbook of Spin Transport and Magnetism provides a comprehensive, balanced account of the state of the art in the field known as spin electronics or spintronics. It reveals how key phenomena first discovered in one class of materials, such as spin injection in metals, have been revisited decades later in other materials systems, including silicon, organic semiconductors, carbon nanotubes, graphene, and carefully engineered nanostructures. The first section of the book offers a historical and personal perspective of the field written by Nobel Prize laureate Albert Fert. The second section addresses physical phenomena, such as GMR, in hybrid structures of ferromagnetic and normal metals. The third section discusses recent developments in spin-dependent tunneling, including magnetic tunnel junctions with ferroelectric barriers. In the fourth section, the contributors look at how to control spin and magnetism in semiconductors. In the fifth section, they examine phenomena typically found in nanostructures made from metals, superconductors, molecular magnets, carbon nanotubes, quantum dots, and graphene. The final section covers novel spin-based applications, including advanced magnetic sensors, nonvolatile magnetoresistive random access memory, and semiconductor spin-lasers. The techniques and materials of spintronics have rapidly evolved in recent years, leading to vast improvements in hard drive storage and magnetic sensing. With extensive cross-references between chapters, this seminal handbook provides a complete guide to spin transport and magnetism across various classes of materials and structures.

In magnetic systems of nano-meter size, the interplay between spin and charge of electrons provides unique transport phenomena. In magnetic superlattices, magnetic and non-magnetic metallic thin films with thickness of the order of one nano-meter are piled-up alternately. Since the discovery of giant magnetoresistance (GMR) in these superlattices in 1988, spin dependent transport phenomena in magnetic nanostructures have received much attention from both academic and technological points of view. Ferromagnetic tunnel junctions made of ferromagnetic metal electrodes and a very thin insulating barrier between them are also of current interest as magnetoresistive devices, where the tunneling current depends on the relative orientation of magnetization (TMR). In addition to magnetic superlattices and magnetic tunnel junctions, magnetic granular systems and magnetic dots have been studied extensively as magnetoresistive systems. Edited by two of the world's leading authorities, Spin Dependent Transport in Magnetic Nanostructures introduces and explains the basic physics and applications of a variety of spin-dependent transport phenomena in magnetic nanostructures with particular emphasis on magnetic multilayers and magnetic tunnel junctions.

This unique handbook compiles and details cutting-edge research in nanomagnetism and its applications in spintronics, magnetoplasmonics, and nonlinear magneto-optics. Fundamental aspects of magnetism relevant to nanodevices and new spin-transfer torque random-access memory (STT-RAM), current-induced domain wall motion memory, and spin torque oscill