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We experimentally demonstrate a disruptive approach to control magnetooptical nonreciprocal effects. It has been known that the combination of a magneto-optically (MO) active substrate and extraordinary transmission (EOT) effects through deep-subwavelength nanoslits of a noble metal grating, leads to giant enhancements of the magnitude of the MO effects that would normally be obtained on just the bar substrate. This was demonstrated both in the transmission configuration, where the OET is directly observed, as well as in reflection configuration, where an increase of a transmitted power results in a decrease in reflected power. We show here that even more than just an enhancement, the MO effects can also undergo a sign reversal by achieving a hybridization of the different types of resonances at play in these EOT nanogratings. By tuning the geometrical profile of the grating's slits, one can engineer - for a fixed wavelength and fixed magnetization - the transverse MO Kerr effect (TMOKE) reflectivity of such a magnetoplasmonic system to be enhanced, extinguished or inversely enhanced. We have fabricated gold gratings with varying nanoslit widths on a Bi-substituted gadolinium iron garnet and experimentally confirmed such a behavior using a customized magneto-optic Mueller matrix ellipsometer. This demonstration allows new design paradigms for integrated nonreciprocal circuits and biochemical sensors with increased sensitivity and reduced footprint. Web of Science 26 24 31566 31554

The idea that we developed in this work is to use an electric field to control the dielectric and magnetic properties of nanomaterials in a microwave device. For this, we seek to exploit the concept of the magnetoelectric effect (ME effect). Granular nanostructures have many advantages over ceramics, thin layers and single-phase materials. The low conductivity, the absence of interdiffusion and chemical reactions parasites due to sintering, the absence of substrate, the conservation of the nanoscale, the ease and low cost protocol for developing these NCs make them materials of choice for the achievement of a ME to propose original microwave devices. We demonstrate large increases of the real and imaginary parts of the microwave effective complex permittivity of a series of (piezoelectric)BaTiO3 / (magnetostrictive) Ni nanocomposites under the action of a magnetic field, by about 10% at 2 kOe and 300% at 5 kOe, respectively. We suggest that the magnetic field dependence of the effective permittivity is consistent with a magnetoelectric effect which can be qualitatively understood within a model in which the piezoelectric phase is mechanically coupled to the magnetostrictive phase., L'idée que nous avons développé dans ce travail est de faire usage d'une commande électrique unique pour modifier à la fois les propriétés diélectrique et magnétique de nanomatériaux contenus dans le dispositif hyperfréquence. Pour cela, nous cherchons à exploiter le concept de propriété produit, dont un exemple est donné par l'effet magnétoélectrique (ME). Si l'on considère un mélange de deux phases condensées en contact, la première étant magnétostrictive et la seconde piézoélectrique, alors l'application d'un champ magnétique externe sur la phase magnétostrictive génère un champ de contrainte mécanique locale activant la piézoélectricité et ainsi fait apparaître un gradient de potentiel. En d'autres termes, la magnétoélectricité conduit à une variation de la permittivité par l'application d'un champ magnétique externe, et par commutativité, à une dépendance de la perméabilité magnétique sous l'action d'un gradient de potentiel. Les nanostructures granulaires présentent de nombreux avantages par rapport aux céramiques, aux couches minces et aux matériaux monophasés. La faible conductivité, l'absence d'interdiffusion et de réactions chimiques parasites dues au frittage, l'absence de substrat, la conservation de l'échelle nanométrique, la facilité et le faible coût du protocole d'élaboration de ces NCs en font des matériaux de choix pour la réalisation d'un effet ME en vue de proposer des dispositifs hyperfréquences originaux. Le fait saillant de ce travail a été de mettre en évidence un couplage magnétoélectrique (ME) dans des nanocomposites (NCs) granulaires biphasiques dans le domaine micro-onde à température ambiante. L'usage de la résonance ferromagnétique (RFM-LMB) sur une large gamme de fréquences (6-28 GHz) et de spectroscopie micro-onde (100 MHz-6 GHz) combiné à une étude du transport électronique et à l'utilisation de plusieurs sondes morphologiques nous a permis de corréler les propriétés dynamiques de l'aimantation, les paramètres électromagnétiques des matériaux, et les informations microstructurales au coefficient ME.

National audience; Des capteurs sans fil totalement passifs inspirés de la technologie RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) sans puce ont été réalisés dans le but de suivre la dégradation des matériaux. Le système complet comprend un lecteur associé au capteur passif, basé sur la réalisation de résonateurs RF sensibles à la corrosion. Cette étude présente deux différents résonateurs. Le premier est sensible au potentiel de corrosion Ecorr par rapport à une électrode de référence. La caractérisation radiofréquence de ce résonateur démontre la sensibilité de cette méthode à la passivation de l'acier dans l'eau de mer et à la dégradation de revêtements organiques. Dans un second temps, l'élément sensible a été modi fié afin d'obtenir une information sur les potentiels électriques et le s courants de corrosion .

We report a ferromagnetic resonance study of an electrically insulating magnetic bi-layer consisting of two yttrium iron garnet (YIG) films epitaxially grown on both sides of a non-magnetic gadolinium gallium garnet (GGG) slab. We show that standing transverse sound waves couple the coherent magnetization dynamics of the two YIG films half millimeter apart through the magnetoelastic interaction, periodically modulating the microwave absorption as a function of frequency. Constructive and destructive interferences between the dynamics of the two YIG layers is observed. This long range coherent coupling by phononic angular momentum currents through non-magnetic dielectric waveguide brings new functionalities to insulator hybrid spin circuits and devices.

The emerging field of $m\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}a\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}g\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}n\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}o\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}n\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}i\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}c\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}s$ utilizes propagating coherent magnons (collective excitations of electron spins) as carriers of information. Scaling down magnonic devices requires finding new approaches to the efficient excitation of magnons at nanoscale. This study demonstrates an approach to excite coherent GHz-frequency magnons in magnetic insulators by means of dc electric currents. The proposed method opens a route for implementing highly efficient nanomagnonic computing systems.

The vertically integrated potential energy of an incompressible stratified fluid formulated in density coordinates can be simply written as a weighted vertical sum of the squares of the vertical displacements of density surfaces, a general expression valid for arbitrary displacements. The sum of this form of potential energy and kinetic energy is then a conserved quantity for the multilayer shallow water model. The formulation in density coordinates is a natural one to find the Lorenz reference state of available potential energy (APE). We describe the method to compute the APE of an ocean state and provide two applications. The first is the classical double-gyre, wind-driven circulation simulated by a shallow water model at high resolution. We show that the eddy kinetic and eddy potential energies are localized in regions of large gradients of mean APE. These large gradients surround an APE minimum found between the two gyres. The second is the time-mean World Ocean Circulation reconstructed from hydrography (World Ocean Atlas) and reference velocities at 1000 db from the Argo float program to obtain an absolute circulation. The total available potential energy exceeds the total mean kinetic energy of the World Ocean by three orders of magnitude, pointing out the very small Burger number of the circulation. The Gulf Stream, the Kuroshio, the Agulhas retroflection, and the confluence regions are four examples that confirm the shallow water model results that large gradients of mean available potential energy can be used as predictors for the presence of high eddy kinetic energy (obtained here from satellite altimetry).

Zinc electrodes were polarized cathodically at moderate overpotentials in NaCl 0.6 M solutions under potentiostatic conditions for 7 to 17 hours at room temperature. Corrosion products were characterized by using optical microscopy, XRD, Raman microscopy, XPS, and FIB‐SEM. Close to the open‐circuit potential, the corrosion products were formed by simonkolleite and the electrochemical response exhibits anodic features. At more negative potentials, the current density remains cathodic throughout the polarization and the deposits on the electrode surface consist almost solely of ZnO. The soluble zinc species necessary for ZnO deposition originate from localized dissolution of the substrate in the form of pits. This effect is assigned to the strong alkalinization of the surface due to oxygen reduction. Despite developing greater surface area than bare zinc substrates, the nanostructured ZnO deposits reduced the cathodic activity.

International audience; We report a study on spin conductance in ultra-thin films of Yttrium Iron Garnet (YIG), where spin transport is provided by propagating spin waves, that are generated and detected by direct and inverse spin Hall effects in two Pt wires deposited on top. While at low current the spin conductance is dominated by transport of thermal magnons, at high current, the spin conductance is dominated by low-damping non-equilibrium magnons thermalized near the spectral bottom by magnon-magnon interaction, with consequent a sensitivity to the applied magnetic field and a longer decay length. This picture is supported by microfocus Brillouin Light Scattering spectroscopy.

International audience; The temperature dependence of exchange bias properties are studied in polycrystalline BiFeO3/Ni81Fe19 bilayers, for different BiFeO3 thicknesses. Using a field cooling protocol, a non-monotonic behavior of the exchange bias field is shown in the exchange-biased bilayers. Another thermal protocol, the Soeya protocol, related to the BiFeO3 thermal activation energies was carried out and reveals a two-step evolution of the exchange bias field. The results of these two different protocols are similar to the ones obtained for measurements previously reported on epitaxial BiFeO3, indicating a driving mechanism independent of the long-range crystalline arrangement (i.e. epitaxial or polycrystalline). An intrinsic property of BiFeO3 is proposed as being the driving mechanism for the thermal dependent magnetization reversal: the canting of the BiFeO3 spins leading to a biquadratic contribution to the exchange coupling. The temperature dependence of the magnetization reversal angular behavior agrees with the presence of such a biquadratic contribution for exchange biased bilayers studied here

International audience; This paper presents the measurement of long-time equivalent magnetic field fluctuations. It was obtained with a low noise off-diagonal GMI magnetometer. Acquisitions are conducted with a dedicated acquisition system. The GMI sensor principle and associated noise sources are reminded. Furthermore, the noise model is extended to include the impact of the very low frequency drift of the associated GMI impedance. The homemade GMI magnetometer and the used high dynamic analog to digital converter board are described. The obtained performances show a peak to peak fluctuations of 10 nTpp and a drift of 20 nT/h during 4.5 hours after a transient response. Results are compared, in real time, to a commercial flux gate magnetometer.

In recent years, spin–orbit effects have been widely used to produce and detect spin currents in spintronic devices. The peculiar symmetry of the spin Hall effect allows creation of a spin accumulation at the interface between a metal with strong spin–orbit interaction and a magnetic insulator, which can lead to a net pure spin current flowing from the metal into the insulator. This spin current applies a torque on the magnetization, which can eventually be driven into steady motion. Tailoring this experiment on extended films has proven to be elusive, probably due to mode competition. This requires the reduction of both the thickness and lateral size to reach full damping compensation. Here we show clear evidence of coherent spin–orbit torque-induced auto-oscillation in micron-sized yttrium iron garnet discs of thickness 20 nm. Our results emphasize the key role of quasi-degenerate spin-wave modes, which increase the threshold current., This research was partially supported by the ANR Grant Trinidad (ASTRID 2012 program). M.C. acknowledges DGA for financial support. V.V.N. acknowledges support from the program CMIRA'Pro of the region Rhône-Alpes. S.O.D. and V.V.N. acknowledge, respectively, support from the Russian programs Megagrant No. 2013-220-04-329 and Competitive Growth of KFU.

Excitation of magnetization dynamics by pure spin currents has been recently recognized as an enabling mechanism for spintronics and magnonics, which allows implementation of spin-torque devices based on low-damping insulating magnetic materials. Here we report the first spatially-resolved study of the dynamic modes excited by pure spin current in nanometer-thick microscopic insulating Yttrium Iron Garnet disks. We show that these modes exhibit nonlinear self-broadening preventing the formation of the self-localized magnetic bullet, which plays a crucial role in the stabilization of the single-mode magnetization oscillations in all-metallic systems. This peculiarity associated with the efficient nonlinear mode coupling in low-damping materials can be among the main factors governing the interaction of pure spin currents with the dynamic magnetization in high-quality magnetic insulators., This research was partially supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, the ANR Grant Trinidad (ASTRID 2012 program), and the program Megagrant No. 14.Z50.31.0025 of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science. M. C. acknowledges DGA for financial support. V. V. N. acknowledges support from the Competitive Growth of KFU.

This dissertation presents a study of the exchange coupling in ferromagnetic-multiferroic nanostructures, with specific interest in understanding the thermal and angular reversal of the magnetization.A theorical numerical model of the thermal magnetization reversal in core-shell nanoparticles is presented. The program source code, implemented during this thesis, is freely avaibale to the scientific community under an open-source license. This model, developed during this thesis, allows diameter size dispersion, and demonstrates the key role of the size distribution and temperature in the magnetic response of nanoparticles.The experimentally studied bilayer is composed of a ferromagnetic material, Ni81Fe19, and a room temperature magnetoelectric multiferroic, BiFeO3. Different thicknesses in BiFeO3 were deposited. The structure and morphology of the bilayers were studied using X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, revealing in particular the BiFeO3 polycristallinity. The magnetization reversal was probed by vectorial vibrating magnetometry, at room temperature and 77 K, using a self-developped immersive cryostat. The SQUID magnetometry allowed the measurement of two specific cooling protocols between 10 K and 380 K. The results of these two different protocols are similar to the ones obtained for measurements previously reported on expitaxial BiFeO3. An intrinsic property of BiFeO3 is proposed as being the driving mechanism for the thermal dependent magnetization reversal: the canting of the BiFeO3 spins leading to a biquadratic contribution to the exchange coupling. Finally, a new phenomenon in exchange coupled materials is shown at room temperature, which corresponds to an angular training of the anisotropy axes., Ce travail de thèse est consacré à l’étude du couplage d’échange dans des nano-structures de type ferromagnétique-multiferroïque, avec un intérêt particulier dans la compréhension du renversement en température et angulaire de l’aimantation.Au niveau théorique, un modèle numérique de renversement en température de l’aimantation dans des nanoparticules de type cœur-coquille sera présenté. Le code source du programme, implémenté au cours de cette thèse, a été rendu disponible pour la communauté scientifique sous licence libre. Il permet notamment d’introduire une dispersion en taille des particules, et démontrera le rôle clé de la distribution en taille et de la température dans la réponse magnétique des nanoparticules.Au niveau expérimental, une bicouche composée d’un ferromagnétique Ni81Fe19, et d’un multiferroïque magnétoélectrique à température ambianteBiFeO3, est étudiée. Ces couches sont déposées par pulvérisation cathodique radiofréquence, selon différentes épaisseurs de BiFeO3. Leur structure ainsi que leur morphologie sont caractérisées par diffraction des rayons X, microscopie à force atomique et microscopie électronique à transmission, révélant en particulier la polycristallinité de BiFeO3. Le renversement de l’aimantation est analysé par magnétométrie vectorielle à échantillon vibrant, fournissant des mesures angulaires à température ambiante et à 77 K, à l’aide d’un cryostat à immersion développé au cours de cette thèse ; ainsi que par magnétométrie SQUID, avec l’application de deux protocoles spécifiques de refroidissement en température (entre 10 K et 380 K). Les résultats montrent un comportement similaire à ceux obtenus sur des bicouches épitaxiées. Une propriété intrinsèque du BiFeO3 sera proposée comme étant un mécanisme possible conduisant au comportement en température obtenu, à savoir le cantage des spins de BiFeO3 conduisant à une contribution biquadratique du couplage d’échange. Finalement, un phénomène nouveau dans les matériaux couplés par échange sera mis en évidence à température ambiante, c’est-à-dire un traînage angulaire des axes d’anisotropie.

Corrosion and material degradation are major problems that economically impact many areas of activity. This degradation depends on many environmental parameters. In this context, monitoring the degradation of materials is crucial. The objective of this thesis is to develop materials degradation sensors that are chipless and wireless. For that purpose, this work will be based on passive RFID (Radio Frequency Identification). We present different resonators sensitive to the degradation and corrosion of materials. These are often linked to the presence of water in the environment; part of the thesis concerns the monitoring of the absorption in organic coatings and concrete. In order to correlate the presence of water with a degradation of the metal present in the dielectric, a resonator sensitive to the corrosion potential is then proposed. Finally, a study on the detection of dissolved salts in the medium is performed by this type of technique. Following these results, a shorter part of the realization of a demonstrator in the authorized ISM band at 2.45 GHz is presented. It provides a discussion about the use of this type of sensor in real situations., La corrosion et la dégradation des matériaux sont des problèmes majeurs qui impactent économiquement de nombreux domaines d’activités. Cette dégradation dépend de nombreux paramètres environnementaux. Dans ce cadre, le suivi de la dégradation des matériaux est primordial. L’objectif de cette thèse est donc d’élaborer des capteurs de dégradation de matériaux, sans fils et passifs énergétiquement. Pour cela, notre travail sera basé sur la technologie RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) passive. Nous présentons alors, des résonateurs sensibles à la dégradation et à la corrosion des matériaux. Celles-ci étant souvent liées à la présence d’eau dans le milieu environnant, une partie de la thèse concerne le suivi de l’absorption dans les revêtements organiques et les bétons. Afin de corréler la présence d’eau avec une dégradation du métal présent dans le diélectrique, un résonateur sensible au potentiel de corrosion est ensuite proposé. Pour finir, une étude sur la détection des sels dissouts dans le milieu est réalisée par ce type de technique. Suite à la présentation de ces résultats, une partie plus courte consacrée à la réalisation d’un démonstrateur sur la bande ISM autorisée à 2.45 GHz est présentée. Elle permet une discussion sur l’utilisation de ce type de capteur dans des situations réelles.

We studied the nonlocal transport behavior of both electrically and thermally excited magnons in yttrium iron garnet (YIG) as a function of its thickness. For electrically injected magnons, the nonlocal signals decrease monotonically as the YIG thickness increases. For the nonlocal behavior of the thermally generated magnons, or the nonlocal spin Seebeck effect (SSE), we observed a sign reversal which occurs at a certain heater-detector distance, and it is influenced by both the opacity of the YIG/heater interface and the YIG thickness. Our nonlocal SSE results can be qualitatively explained by the bulk-driven SSE mechanism together with the magnon diffusion model. Using a two-dimensional finite element model (2D-FEM), we estimated the bulk spin Seebeck coefficient of YIG at room temperature. The quantitative disagreement between the experimental and modeled results indicates more complex processes going on in addition to magnon diffusion and relaxation, especially close to the contacts., 16 pages, 11 figures

International audience; – We demonstrate that an in-plane uniaxial anisotropy may be induced in non-amorphous soft CoFeZr films. We used broadband ferromagnetic resonance spectroscopy and complex permeability spectra to investigate the spin dynamics in CoFeZr films. We report a systematic study of the FM thickness on the fundamental dynamic parameters such as the effective magnetisation, the g-factor and relaxation mechanisms. Our study reveals that the decrease of the effective magnetisation mesured with FMR with thickness is not due to perpendicular anisotropy but to low dimentionality. Moreover, we observed a decrease of the g-factor with thickness and a modification of the ratio of the orbital to the spin magnetic moment. These films exhibit good high-frequency performance red (i.e. high permeability in a broad frequency range and a low damping) at low thickness of about a few nanometers. Copyright c EPLA, 2016 Nowadays, spintronics devices and magnetic media have to operate at the gigahertz regime (i.e. with ns reversal times). Magnetic thin films are widely used and studied because the ability of their magnetization to precess/reverse in a high frequency-short time range (several GHz/ns) [1,2]. For high-frequency applications, these magnetic materials need to have a large permeabil-ity in a broad frequency range [3]. The key parameters that govern spin dynamics are the saturation magnetiza-tion, the effective field and the (Lande) factor [4]. FeCo alloy should be, at first glance, one of the most competitive candidates because of its high saturation mag-netization M S (2.45 T). However, as-deposited FeCo films exhibit high coercive field ranging from 100 to 200 Oe, in-plane isotropic magnetic anisotropy and a large magne-tocrystalline anisotropy which hinders the high-frequency applications ([5] and references therein). A solution is to produce amorphous CoFe-based alloys by alloying met-alloid into the FM matrix: the addition of a metal-loid in the ferromagnet (FM) destroys the cristallinity, (a)

International audience; The impact of mechanical site preparation (MSP) on soil biogeochemical structure in young larch plantations was investigated. Soil samples were collected in replicated plots comprising simple trenching, double trenching, mounding and inverting site preparation. Unlogged natural mixed forest areas were used as a reference. Analysis of soil nutrients, abundance of bacteria and gas exchanges unveiled no significant difference among the plots. However, inverting site preparation resulted in higher variations of gas exchanges when compared with trenching, mounding and unlogged natural forest. A combination of the biological and physicochemical variables was used to define a multifunctional classification of the soil samples into four distinct groups categorized as a function of their deviation from baseline ecological conditions. According to this classification model, simple trenching was the approach that represented the lowest ecological risk potential at the microsite level. No relationship was observed between MSP method and soil bacterial community structure as assessed by high-throughput sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA gene; however, indicator genotypes were identified for each multifunctional soil class. This is the first identification of multifunctional molecular indicators for baseline and disturbed ecological conditions in soil, demonstrating the potential of applied microbial ecology to guide silvicultural practices and ecological risk assessment.

This thesis focused on the design of a passive wireless corrosion sensor. Existing wireless solutions concern either classic architecture sensors or passive solutions. In the first case, the corrosion sensor is active and can be interrogated at long range. In the second case, the existing passive solutions only work with reading distances of a few centimeters because of the low frequencies. The objective of this study was to respond to this need. That’s why; we were inspired by the RFID( Radio Frequency Identification) passive chipless technology for the development of a sensor based on a microwave function. The first structure was a microstrip line, of which the strip is composed of a thin layer of an element sensitive to corrosion. In this case, the corrosion of the line is proven by an amplitude variation due to losses principally explained by the skin effect or the creation of defects. A second microwave structure was developed based on a stub (open circuit) which allowed us to follow the process of corrosion via a frequency variation. Much like the microstrip line, this structure allowed us to distinguish between uniform corrosion and localised corrosion. Due to the highlighting of these features, different corrosion control strategies can be imagined and a demonstrator was executed. The key point of the proposed demonstrator is an increase in the reading distance in the chipless RFID technology; this was made possible by taking into consideration the isolation TX / Rx of the reader. In this context, three types of antennas were studied. In order to increase the reading distance, other isolation techniques were proposed: the use of a phase shifter but also a temporal isolation using a SAW delay line. Thanks to these two methods, a reading distance of two meters was obtained. Following the RF characterizations of metals exposed to the discussed corrosion, we also developed a near field RF probe, which allows corrosion diagnostic of metal surfaces., Cette thèse a porté sur la conception d'un capteur de corrosion passif, sans contact de moyenne portée. Les solutions existantes sans fil concernent soit des capteurs à architecture classique, soit des solutions passives. Dans le premier cas, le capteur de corrosion est actif et peut être interrogé à longue portée. Dans le second cas, les solutions passives existantes ne fonctionnent qu’avec des distances de lecture de quelques centimètres du fait des basses fréquences utilisées. L’objectif de ce travail était de répondre à ce besoin. Pour cela, nous nous sommes inspirés de la technologie RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) passive chipless pour le développement d’un capteur basé sur une fonction hyperfréquence. La première structure réalisée a été une ligne microruban, dont le ruban est constitué d’une couche mince d’un élément sensible à la corrosion. Dans ce cas, la corrosion de la ligne s’est traduite par une variation d’amplitude du fait de l’apparition de pertes expliquées principalement par l’effet de peau ou la création de défauts. Une deuxième structure hyperfréquence a été élaborée en se basant sur un stub (circuit ouvert) qui a permis de suivre le processus de la corrosion via une variation de fréquence. Comme le cas de la ligne microruban, cette structure nous a permis de distinguer la corrosion uniforme et la corrosion localisée. Grâce à la mise en évidence de ces fonctionnalités, diverses stratégies de contrôle de la corrosion peuvent être imaginées et un démonstrateur a été réalisé. Le point clé du démonstrateur proposé est une augmentation de la distance de lecture dans la technologie RFID chipless, ceci a été rendu possible en considérant l’isolation Tx / Rx du lecteur. Dans ce contexte, trois types d’antennes ont été étudiées. Afin d’augmenter encore la distance de lecture, d’autres techniques d’isolation ont été proposées : l’utilisation d’un déphaseur mais aussi l’isolation temporelle par l’utilisation d’une ligne à retard SAW. Grâce à ces 2 méthodes, une distance de lecture de deux mètres a été obtenue. Suite aux caractérisations RF des métaux soumis à la corrosion discutées, nous avons aussi élaboré une sonde RF à champ proche permettant de diagnostiquer la corrosion de surfaces métalliques.

International audience; Un capteur radiofréquence sans fil et totalement passif énergétiquement permettant la mesure des potentiels de corrosion a été développé. Il repose sur l'utilisation d'un résonateur dont la fréquence de résonance dépend de la valeur du potentiel de corrosion. Deux exemples sont proposés dans ce résumé : le suivi de la passivation de l'acier et de la dégradation d'un revêtement en époxy. Ces résultats seront complétés à la conférence par des résultats obtenus par un capteur basé sur le même principe et sensible à la variation de la permittivité diélectrique des polymères.

An experimental study of the in-plane azimuthal behaviour and frequency dependence of the ferromagnetic resonance field and the resonance linewidth as a function of BiFeO$_3$ thickness is carried out in a polycrystalline exchange-biased BiFeO$_3$/Ni$_{81}$Fe$_{19}$ system. The magnetization decrease of the Pt/BiFeO$_3$/Ni$_{81}$Fe$_{19}$/Pt heterostructures with BiFeO$_3$ thickness deduced from static measurements has been confirmed by dynamic investigations. Ferromagnetic resonance measurements have shown lower gyromagnetic ratio in a perpendicular geometry compared with that of a parallel geometry. The monotonous decrease of gyromagnetic ratio in a perpendicular geometry as a function of the BiFeO$_3$ film thickness seems to be related to the spin-orbit interactions due to the neighbouring Pt film at its interface with Ni$_{81}$Fe$_{19}$ film. The in-plane azimuthal shape of the total linewidth of the uniform mode shows isotropic behaviour that increases with BiFeO$_3$ thickness. The study of the frequency dependence of the resonance linewidth in a broad band of 3 to 35 GHz has allowed the determination of intrinsic and extrinsic contributions to the relaxation as function of BiFeO$_3$ thickness in perpendicular geometries. In our system the magnetic relaxation is dominated by the spin-pumping mechanism due to the presence of Pt. The insertion of BiFeO$_3$ between Pt and Ni$_{81}$Fe$_{19}$ attenuates the spin-pumping damping at one interface., Comment: paper accepted for publication in the Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics

Potentially harmful trace elements (PHTEs) do not accumulate homogeneously over mountainous area. Generally, highland areas receive more wet deposition, aerosols, and ions than surrounding lowlands ones, mainly due to orographic enhancement. Within mountainous areas, however, the accumulation of PHTEs is much more complex. Direct cloud deposition of contaminants could act as an important pathway of deposition either from a regional low-altitude, cloud level, orographic clouds, or haze whose frequency of occurrence is much higher than surrounding lowlands areas. The accumulation legacy of PHTEs from local human activities should also be considered when investigating PHTE distribution in mountainous areas. Combined with other phenomena, the PHTE accumulation patterns could be highly variable depending on local topography, dominant winds, and vegetation cover, as well as present and past local practices. Despite their remoteness, mountain ecosystems are highly sensitive to PHTEs loadings.

In this work, we conducted a detailed experimental as well as a computational study for the hydrodynamic characterization of the flow in a needle sparger rectangular bubble column. Particle image velocimetry technique (PIV) was used to simultaneously capture the images of both bubbles and seeding polyamide tracers of 50 μm in diameter, the tracer particles were selected to provide sufficient contrast and were neutrally buoyant. A three-dimensional computational model based on an Euler–Lagrange (E–L) approach was performed to simulate the dynamic characteristics of the oscillating bubble plume. The continuous phase velocity field was obtained by solving the unsteady Reynolds averaged Navier–Stokes equations along with the k–e turbulence model. Bubble tracking was achieved by solving the Newton equations of motion taking into account drag force, pressure, buoyancy and gravity. Two-way coupling between the liquid and gas phases are accounted for in the continuous phase momentum equation. The effect of gas flow rate on the dynamic and time-averaged flow properties were studied, the flow was found to have an unsteady structure with three vortices moving in the upward direction and the bubble plume between them oscillated. The simulated results were found to be in accordance with the PIV measurements for a gas flow rate up to 0.1 l/min. The simulated turbulent kinetic energy indicates that the stronger bubble plume velocity oscillations are located near the entrance zone and are caused by the addition of a shear induced turbulence produced by the presence of an oscillating bubble plume.

We study the effect of a magnetic insulator (Yttrium Iron Garnet - YIG) substrate on the spin transport properties of Ni$_{80}$Fe$_{20}$/Al nonlocal spin valve (NLSV) devices. The NLSV signal on the YIG substrate is about 2 to 3 times lower than that on a non magnetic SiO$_2$ substrate, indicating that a significant fraction of the spin-current is absorbed at the Al/YIG interface. By measuring the NLSV signal for varying injector-to-detector distance and using a three dimensional spin-transport model that takes spin current absorption at the Al/YIG interface into account we obtain an effective spin-mixing conductance $G_{\uparrow\downarrow}\simeq 5 - 8\times 10^{13}~\Omega^{-1}$m$^{-2}$. We also observe a small but clear modulation of the NLSV signal when rotating the YIG magnetization direction with respect to the fixed spin polarization of the spin accumulation in the Al. Spin relaxation due to thermal magnons or roughness of the YIG surface may be responsible for the observed small modulation of the NLSV signal., Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, including supplementary information

We report the frequency dependence of the spin current emission (spin pumping) in a hybrid ferrimagnetic insulator/normal metal system as a function of the insulating layer thickness. The system is based on an yttrium iron garnet (YIG) film [0.2, 1, and $3\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m}$] grown by liquid-phase epitaxy coupled with a spin current detector of platinum[6 nm]. A strong YIG thickness dependence of the efficiency of the spin pumping has been observed. The highest conversion factor $\ensuremath{\Delta}V/{P}_{\mathrm{abs}}$ has been demonstrated for the thinner YIG (1.79 and 0.55 mV/mW at 2.5 and 10 GHz, respectively), which is of interest for research heading towards YIG-based devices. Furthermore, we demonstrate the threshold frequency dependence of the three-magnon splitting process, which is shown to cease to exist for the thinner YIG of $0.2\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m}$.

This paper describes a model for magnetization reversal in polycrystalline Ferromagnetic/Antiferromagnetic exchange biased bilayers. We assume that the exchange energy can be expanded into cosine power series. We show that it is possible to fit experimental asymmetric shape of hysteresis loops in exchange biased bilayer for any direction of the applied field. The hysteresis asymmetry is discussed in terms of energy considerations. An angle beta is introduced to quantify the easy axis dispersion of AF grains., Comment: 15 pages, 4 figures

The spin-Seebeck effect (SSE) in platinum (Pt) and tantalum (Ta) on yttrium iron garnet (YIG) has been investigated by both externally heating the sample (using an on-chip Pt heater on top of the device) as well as by current-induced heating. For SSE measurements, external heating is the most common method to obtain clear signals. Here we show that also by current-induced heating it is possible to directly observe the SSE, separate from the also present spin-Hall magnetoresistance (SMR) signal, by using a lock-in detection technique. Using this measurement technique, the presence of additional 2nd order signals at low applied magnetic fields and high heating currents is revealed. These signals are caused by current-induced magnetic fields (Oersted fields) generated by the used AC-current, resulting in dynamic SMR signals., Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures

A ferromagnetic garnet, used as a magneto-optical (MO) material in magneto-photonic and magneto-plasmonic structures, is characterized. We present a general procedure to determine optical and magneto-optical functions of the magneto-optic garnet by using Mueller matrix ellipsometry. In the first step, the optical functions (the refractive index spectra) of the (CaMgZr)-doped gallium-gadolinium garnet (sGGG) substrate and the Bi-substituted gadolinium iron garnet Gd1.24Pr0.48Bi1.01Lu0.27Fe4.38Al0.6O12 (Bi:GIG) are obtained in the spectral range from 0.73 eV to 6.42 eV (wavelength range 193 nm – 1.7 μm). Subsequently, the spectra of the magneto-optical tensor components are obtained by applying an external in-plane magnetic field in longitudinal and transverse geometry. The obtained functions are then used to fit the Mueller matrix spectra of a magneto-plasmonic structure with a gold grating on the magneto-optic garnet layer. This structure has recently been demonstrated to have strongly enhanced transverse magneto-optic Kerr response at visible and near-infrared frequencies. By taking possible fabrication imperfections (surface roughness, residual photo-resist layer, thickness deviation) into account, the measured strongly enhanced MO response fits very well to the numerical model predicting these exaltations. Web of Science 4 9 1919 1903

International audience

Spintronics is a field of electronics based on using the electron spin instead of its charge. The recent advance in the manipulation of pure spin currents, i.e. angular momentum transfer not associated to conventional charge currents, has opened new opportunities to build spin based devices with low energy consumption. It has also allowed to integrate ferromagnetic insulators in spintronic devices, either as spin sources or spin conductors using their magnetic excitations to propagate a spin signal. Antiferromagnetic insulators belong to another class of materials that can also sustain magnetic excitations, even with a higher group velocity. Hence, they have potential as angular momentum conductors, possibly making faster spin devices. At the opposite end, angular momentum insulators are also required in spintronic circuits. The present letter underlines some essential features relevant for spin current conduction, based on measurements of angular momentum transmission in antiferromagnetic NiO and in the non-magnetic light element insulator SiO$_2$.

High quality nanometer-thick (20 nm, 7 nm, and 4 nm) epitaxial Yttrium Iron Garnet (YIG) films have been grown on gadolinium gallium garnet substrates using pulsed laser deposition. The Gilbert damping coefficient for the 20 nm thick films is 2.3 × 10−4 which is the lowest value reported for sub-micrometric thick films. We demonstrate Inverse spin Hall effect (ISHE) detection of propagating spin waves using Pt. The amplitude and the lineshape of the ISHE voltage correlate well to the increase of the Gilbert damping when decreasing thickness of YIG. Spin Hall effect based loss-compensation experiments have been conducted but no change in the magnetization dynamics could be detected.

The effective field torque of an yttrium-iron-garnet film on the spin accumulation in an attached Pt film is measured by the spin-Hall magnetoresistance (SMR). As a result, the magnetization direction of a ferromagnetic insulating layer can be measured electrically. Experimental transverse and longitudinal resistances are well described by the theoretical model of SMR in terms of the direct and inverse spin-Hall effect, for different Pt thicknesses [3, 4, 8 and 35nm]. Adopting a spin-Hall angle of Pt $\theta_{SH}=0.08$, we obtain the spin diffusion length of Pt ($\lambda=1.1\pm0.3$nm) as well as the real ($G_r=(7\pm3)\times10^{14}\Omega^{-1}$m$^{-2}$) and imaginary part ($G_i=(5\pm3)\times10^{13}\Omega^{-1}$m$^{-2}$) of the spin-mixing conductance and their ratio ($G_r/G_i=16\pm4$)., Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures

The occurrence of Spin-Hall Magnetoresistance (SMR) in platinum (Pt) on top of yttrium iron garnet (YIG) has been investigated, for both in-plane and out-of-plane applied magnetic fields and for different Pt thicknesses [3, 4, 8 and 35nm]. Our experiments show that the SMR signal directly depends on the in-plane and out-of-plane magnetization directions of the YIG. This confirms the theoretical description, where the SMR occurs due to the interplay of spin-orbit interaction in the Pt and spin-mixing at the YIG/Pt interface. Additionally, the sensitivity of the SMR and spin pumping signals on the YIG/Pt interface conditions is shown by comparing two different deposition techniques (e-beam evaporation and dc sputtering)., Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures

We report on a comparative study of spin Hall related effects and magnetoresistance in YIG|Pt and YIG|Ta bilayers. These combined measurements allow to estimate the characteristic transport parameters of both Pt and Ta layers juxtaposed to YIG: the spin mixing conductance $G_{\uparrow \downarrow}$ at the YIG$|$normal metal interface, the spin Hall angle $\Theta_{SH}$, and the spin diffusion length $\lambda_{sd}$ in the normal metal. The inverse spin Hall voltages generated in Pt and Ta by the pure spin current pumped from YIG excited at resonance confirm the opposite signs of spin Hall angles in these two materials. Moreover, from the dependence of the inverse spin Hall voltage on the Ta thickness, we extract the spin diffusion length in Ta, found to be $\lambda_{sd}^\text{Ta}=1.8\pm0.7$ nm. Both the YIG|Pt and YIG|Ta systems display a similar variation of resistance upon magnetic field orientation, which can be explained in the recently developed framework of spin Hall magnetoresistance., Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, 1 table

The thickness dependence of the static and dynamic properties of Co2MnSi (CMS) full Heusler was investigated. Five samples with thickness ranging from 7 to 100 nm were deposited by rf magnetron sputtering on single crystal MgO(001). X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) evidence the epitaxial growth of samples, with an epitaxial relationship MgO(001)[100]//CMS(011)[110]. Magnetic properties were studied by standard magnetometry and broadband stripline ferromagnetic resonance (FMR). We observe a four-fold magnetocrystalline anisotropy Kc = 1.5 × 105 erg/cm3 for thicker samples, and an increase of Kc up to 2.6 × 105 erg/cm3 for the thinnest sample, accompanied by an increase of saturation magnetization. We attribute this behavior to interfacial effect (strain or stoichiometry).

This paper presents the frequency dependence of the spin current emission in a hybrid ferrimagnetic insulator/normal metal system. The system is based on a ferrimagnetic insulating thin film of Yttrium Iron Garnet (YIG, 200 nm) grown by liquid-phase-epitaxy (LPE) coupled with a normal metal with a strong spin-orbit coupling (Pt, 15 nm). The YIG layer presents an isotropic behaviour of the magnetization in the plane, a small linewidth, and a roughness lower than 0.4 nm. Here we discuss how the voltage signal from the spin current detector depends on the frequency [0.6 - 7 GHz], the microwave power, Pin, [1 - 70 mW], and the in-plane static magnetic field. A strong enhancement of the spin current emission is observed at low frequencies, showing the appearance of non-linear phenomena., 7 pages, 5 figures

Site-selective x-ray detected magnetic resonance (XDMR) spectra were recorded in transverse detection geometry on two iron garnet thin films grown by liquid phase epitaxy (LPE) on oriented gadolinium gallium garnet (GGG) substrates: whereas the stoichiometry of the first film corresponded to pure yttrium iron garnet (1 = YIG) used as reference, yttrium was partly substituted with lanthanum and lutetium in the second film (2 = La–Lu–YIG). Surprisingly, the XDMR spectra of film 2 recorded at either the Fe K-edge or the La L3-edge revealed well-resolved structures that had fairly different relative intensity depending on whether we probed the tetrahedral () sites of iron or the dodecahedral () sites of lanthanum. The narrow XDMR lines measured at the Fe K-edge also contrast with the broad, foldover distorted lineshapes of the ferrimagnetic resonance spectra measured in the same scan. Further XDMR experiments were carried out with a thin, disc-shaped, single crystal of gadolinium iron garnet (3 = GdIG). At temperatures slightly above the gadolinium ordering temperature (T > TB = 69 K), the Gd L2-edge XDMR spectra were dominated by two well-resolved lines of nearly equal intensities. Similarly, the Fe K-edge XDMR spectra recorded under identical conditions did also split into several narrow lines but of strongly unequal intensity. These results suggest that, in the exchange-enhanced paramagnetic regime, spins precessing at the dodecahedral () sites of gadolinium do not couple in the same way with spins precessing at either the tetrahedral () or octahedral () sites of iron. On the other hand, destructive interferences between modes of opposite helicities were also observed in Fe K-edge XDMR spectra recorded far above the compensation temperature (T ≫ Tcp = 290 K). This looks like a typical signature of nonlinear four-magnon scattering processes at a very high pumping power.

cited By 5; The insertion of hydrogen in V and Fe has been investigated by means of pseudopotential DFT calculations with localized basis sets. In Fe and V matrices we have replaced the central atom by a transition metal impurity X = Sc, Ti, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co and Ni to study the capacity of the environment to trap hydrogen. The dissolution energy and structural rearrangement upon H uptake at the different sites close to the doping impurity are calculated. Optimal electronic environments for H trapping are also determined through the calculation of the Fukui function. In the V matrix, the insertion of hydrogen is promoted by doping with the two impurities located at the left of V in the Periodical Table, that is, Ti and Sc. In the iron matrix, among the elements at its left in the Periodic Table, only Mn improves the H uptake, whereas doping with V and Ti worsen the capability of absorbing hydrogen. Finally, the H-H interaction is found to be strongly dependent upon the metal-hydrogen interaction. Elements like Mn or Fe which shorten the H-X distance, exhibit a strong 3d TM state-1s hydrogen state hybridization that seems to wash out the repulsive H-H Coulomb interaction below the 2.0 limit. Addition of a small percentage of Fe or Mn in binary bcc alloys (V-Ti) is suggested to locally enhance the H storage capacity. © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The aim of this study was to provide some understanding about the improvement of the corrosion resistance of ZnMg and ZnMgAl alloys in comparison to Zn, in chloride content atmospheric environment, from fundamental considerations gradually towards the actual use of these materials. The first approach consisted in the synthesis and physicochemical characterization of films of magnesium doped zinc oxide and particularly the evolution of parameters such as the crystal structure, the electronic structure (band gap), the resistivity, (…) with doping. The relevance of these parameters was then evaluated and discussed regarding to the stability of these films in a solution of pH 8.4. The second stage focused on the characterization of corrosion products formed in the laboratory with or without chloride, on pure Zn and ZnMg. The physico-chemical processes related to the formation of these products were then discussed to highlight the role of Mg in the improvement of the corrosion resistance of ZnMg alloys in comparison with the Zn. The third and final stage consisted in the characterization of corrosion products formed in marine atmosphere on pure Zn and ZnMg, as well as on industrial coating-type ZnMgAl, after 6 months of exposure. The results obtained in this study showed a better stability in solution of solid solution films of Zn0.84Mg0.16O in comparison with the ZnO, correlated with the increase of hydroxyl bonds, associated with an increase of resistivity and work function. These three parameters appeared also relevant regarding the corrosion products formed naturally in the laboratory and in the presence of Mg and Mg-Al, and correlated with improvement of the corrosion resistance., Cette étude a pour objet d’apporter des éléments de compréhension quant à l’amélioration de la résistance à la corrosion des alliages de ZnMg(Al), en comparaison du Zn, en milieu atmosphérique chloré. Le cheminement de réflexion part de considérations fondamentales et tend vers des conditions réelles d’utilisation. La première étape a consisté à synthétiser et caractériser des films de ZnO dopé Mg et notamment l’évolution de la structure cristalline, la structure électronique, la résistivité, (…) avec le dopage. La pertinence de ces paramètres a ensuite été évaluée et discutée au regard de la stabilité de ces films en solution. Dans un second temps, les produits de corrosion formés, en laboratoire, en présence ou non de chlorures, sur des phases pures de Zn et ZnMg, ont été caractérisés. Les processus physico-chimiques liés à la formation de ces produits ont ensuite été discutés, afin de mettre en lumière le rôle du Mg dans l’amélioration de la résistance à la corrosion. La dernière étape, s’est attachée à caractériser des produits de corrosion formés après 6 mois en milieu naturel, en atmosphère marine, sur des phases pures de Zn et ZnMg, et des revêtements industriel de type ZnMgAl. Les résultats obtenus ont permis de mettre en évidence une meilleure stabilité en solution des films de Zn0.84Mg0.16O en comparaison du ZnO, en corrélation avec une présence accrue de liaisons hydroxyles, une augmentation de la résistivité et de la fonction de travail. Ces trois paramètres sont apparus également pertinents, sur les produits de corrosion formés en laboratoire et naturellement en présence de Mg et de Mg, Al, et corrélés à l’amélioration de la résistance à la corrosion.

Recently in the field of spintronics, spin transfer torque and spin pumping phenomena in a hybrid ferrimagnetic insulator (Yttrium Iron Garnet: YIG)/normal metal (Platinum: Pt) system have been demonstrated 1 . Since this observation, the actuation, detection and control of the magnetization and spin currents in such systems have attracted much attention from both theoretical and experimental point of view. Spin pumping in a ferromagnetic (NiFe)/normal metal system has been intensively studied as a function of the stoichiometric ratio between nickel and iron atoms 2 , the spin current detector material 3 , and the ferromagnet dimensions 4,5 . Only a few research groups 6–8 have investigated experimentally and theoretically the dc voltage generation (induced by inverse spin-Hall effect) in a NiFe/Pt system as a function of the the thickness of the spin current detector and the ferromagnetic material, at a fixed microwave frequency. To date, no systematic studies of the spin/charge current (charge/spin) conversion in a YIG/Pt system have been presented as a function of the Pt thickness. In this paper, we show the first experimental observation of the Pt thickness dependence in a hybrid system YIG/Pt of the inverse spin-Hall effect (ISHE) from spin pumping, actuated at the resonant condition by using a microstrip line in reflection over a large frequency range and for different rf powers. The used insulating material consists of a single-crystal (111) Y3Fe5O12 (YIG) film grown on a (111) Gd3Ga5O12 (GGG) substrate by liquid-phase-epitaxy (LPE). We have prepared nine samples with different thicknesses of Pt (1.5, 6.0, 9.0, 11.5, 16, 22.5, 33, 62, and 115 nm) deposited by dc sputtering. Fig.1 a) shows a schematic of the samples. The Pt layer (800×1750 µm) has been

X-ray Detected Magnetic Resonance (XDMR) is a novel spectroscopy in which X-ray Magnetic Circular Dichroism (XMCD) is used to probe the resonant precession of local magnetization components in a strong microwave pump field. We review the conceptual bases of XDMR and recast them in the general framework of the linear and nonlinear theories of ferromagnetic resonance (FMR). Emphasis is laid on the information content of XDMR spectra which offer a unique opportunity to disentangle the precession dynamics of spin and orbital magnetization components at given absorbing sites. For the sake of illustration, we focus on selected examples in which marked differences were found between FMR and XDMR spectra simultaneously recorded on ferrimagnetically ordered iron garnets. With pumping capabilities extended up to sub-THz frequencies, high-field XDMR should allow us to probe the precession of orbital magnetization components in paramagnetic organometallic complexes with large zero-field splitting. Even more challenging, we suggest that XDMR spectra might be recorded on selected antiferromagnetic crystals for which orbital magnetism is most often ignored in the absence of any supporting experimental evidence.

International audience; Zinc oxide (ZnO) is a chemical compound of great interest used, for example, as photocatalyst in the purification of wastewater or polluted air. However, neither dissolution, nor photo-dissolution of ZnO is negligible: indeed, both processes reduce significantly the efficiency of photocatalysis and then lead to a secondary pollution by free Zn2+ . In the present study, the stability of ZnMgO thin films in weak alkaline solution is investigated. We demonstrates that the replacement of Zn2+ ion with Mg2+ ion results in the production of a Zn0.84Mg0.16O solid solution, whose stability is higher than that of the ZnO sample. This alloy, thus, constitutes an alternative to the use of ZnO in photocatalysis applications. To gain more insights into the higher resistance of such alloys to the dissolution process, X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements were performed. They highlighted the role of OH group adsorption in the experimentally observed enhancement of ZnMgO stability.

International audience; Anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) films were prepared by alternative current (ac) oxidation in sulfuric acid and phosphoric acid solution. The porous structure of the AAO templates was probed by ac electrodeposition of copper. AAO templates grown using an applied square waveform signal in cold sulfuric acid solution exhibit a greater pore density and a more homogeneous barrier layer. UV–vis–NIR reflectance spectra of the Cu/AAO assemblies exhibit a plasmon absorption peak centered at 580 nm, consistent with the formation of Cu nanostructures slightly larger than 10 nm in diameter. Spectroscopic data also indicate that there is little or no oxide layer surrounding the Cu nanostructures grown by ac electrodeposition. The effect of pH of the cobalt plating solution on the magnetic properties of the Co/AAO assemblies was also investigated. Co nanowire arrays electrodeposited at pH 5.5 in H2SO4-grown AAO templates exhibit a fair coercivity of 1325 Oe, a magnetization squarness of about 72%, and a significant effective anisotropy.

Using electron-induced X-ray emission spectroscopy (XES), we have studied two Al/Ni periodic multilayers that differ only by their annealing temperature: as-deposited and annealed at 115C. Our aim is to show that XES can provide further details about the chemistry at the metal-metal interface, in addition to what is obtained by X-ray diffraction. The distribution of valence states exhibiting Al 3p and Ni 3d character is determined from the analysis of the Al Kbeta and Ni Lalpha emission bands respectively. The multilayer emission bands are compared to those of reference materials: pure Al and Ni metals as well as Al3Ni, Al3Ni2 and AlNi intermetallics. We provide evidence that, for temperatures up to 115C, Al3Ni is the major component of the multilayer., Comment: 5 pages. Can also be found at : http://www.epjap.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online\&aid=8011580

We present a comprehensive study of the magnetic and microwave properties of piezoelectric BaTiO3 /magnetostrictive Ni nanocomposites (NCs), fabricated under uniaxial compression, at room temperature. In the current work, we investigated samples in function of magnetic phase content in a piezoelectric matrix and from 6 to 28 GHz using broadband ferromagnetic resonance (FMR-stripline) experiments in the microwave regime in combination with atomic (AFM) and magnetic force microscopy (MFM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), electron transport, and broadband (0.1-6 GHz) microwave spectroscopy experiments to correlate magnetization dynamics properties, electromagnetic materials parameters, and microstructural information to the magnetoelectric (ME) coupling coefficient. We provide the experimental evidence for ME effect, i.e., the effective permittivity at microwave frequencies can be controlled by an external magnetic field, which makes these nanostructures ready for microwave tunable devices, sensors, and transducers.

Using a magnetic resonance force microscope, we compare the ferromagnetic resonance spectra of individual micron size disks with identical diameter, 1 μm, but different layer structures. For a disk composed of a single 43.3-nm -thick Permalloy (Py) layer, the lowest energy mode in the perpendicular configuration is the uniform precession. The higher energy modes are standing spin waves confined along the diameter of the disk. For a Cu (30 nm) Py (100 nm) Cu (30 nm) multilayer structure, it has been interpreted that the lowest energy mode becomes a precession localized at the Cu/Py interfaces. When the multilayer is changed to Py (100 nm) Cu (10 nm) Py (10 nm), this localized mode of the thick layer becomes coupled to the precession of the thin layer. © 2007 American Institute of Physics.

Spin wave spectra of perpendicularly magnetized disks with trilayers consisting of a 100~nm permalloy (Py) layer sandwiched by two Cu layers of 30~nm, are measured individually with a Magnetic Resonance Force Microscope (MRFM). It is demonstrated by 3D micromagnetic simulations that in disks having sub-micron size diameters, the lowest energy spin wave mode of the saturated state is not spatially uniform but rather is localized at the center of the Py/Cu interface in the region of a minimum demagnetizing field.

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Magnetic and magnetostrictive hysteresis loops of TbCo/CoFe multilayers under field applied along the hard magnetization axis are studied using vectorial magnetization measurements, optical deflectometry and magneto optical Kerr microscopy. Even a very small angle misalignment between hard axis and magnetic field direction is shown to drastically change the shape of magnetization and magnetostrictive torsion hysteresis loops. Two kinds of magnetic domains are revealed during the magnetization: big regions with opposite rotation of spontaneous magnetization vector and spontaneous magnetic domains which appear in a narrow field interval and provide an inversion of this rotation. We show that the details of the hysteresis loops of our exchange-coupled films can be described using the classical model of homogeneous magnetization rotation of single uniaxial films and the configuration of observed domains. The understanding of these features is crucial for applications (for MEMS or microactuators) which benefit from the greatly enhanced sensitivity near the point of magnetic saturation at the transverse applied field., 10 pages, 11 figures

A longitudinal magneto-optical Kerr effect and magnetization-induced second-harmonic generation (MSHG) of light (at 2omega) have been measured in a SiO2/Fe96Si4/Dy30Fe58Co12/glass exchange-coupled magnetic bilayer system with competitive anisotropies. Theoretical MSHG predictions in this structure that give rise to an effect proportional to magnetization components and that are allowed by an electric dipole mechanism are reported and discussed. The magnitude of the MSHG effect depends on the electric field of the incoming radiation at each interface and on the corresponding incoming (at omega) and outgoing (at 2omega) Fresnel coefficients. It is demonstrated that transverse pp MSHG selectively probes the magnetization of the first SiO2/Fe96Si4 interface, while transverse sp and longitudinal ps MSHG is sensitive, but less selectively, to the Fe96Si4/Dy30Fe58Co12 interface that supports a planar magnetic domain wall. (p and s are the usual parallel and perpendicular polarizations to the plane of incidence.) The contribution to MSHG by gradient magnetization terms is negligible.

Reversing the magnetization of a ferromagnet by spin transfer from a current, rather than by applying a magnetic field, is the central idea of an extensive current research. After a review of our experiments of current-induced magnetization reversal in Co/Cu/Co trilayered pillars, we present the model we have worked out for the calculation of the current-induced torque and the interpretation of the experiments.