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Ferrimagnetic insulators capped with a heavy metal are becoming an increasingly interesting materials system in spintronics due to their unique ability for electrical manipulation and detection of magnetic states and spin textures via spin-orbit torques. The ability to engineer magnetic anisotropy is a powerful tool for tuning the recently discovered phenomena in these bilayers such as electrical switching or the stabilization of topological magnetic textures. We observe large shifts in the magnetic anisotropy in ${\mathrm{Tm}}_{3}{\mathrm{Fe}}_{5}{\mathrm{O}}_{12}$ and ${\mathrm{Y}}_{3}{\mathrm{Fe}}_{5}{\mathrm{O}}_{12}$ thin films due to heavy-metal capping layers, which strongly depends on the orientation of the substrate and therefore the orientation of the epitaxial films. This work suggests large Rashba spin-orbit coupling at the metal/ferrimagnetic-insulator interface, which can be engineered in spintronic devices that utilize spin-orbit torques for electrical control of the magnetization in magnetic insulators.

Interfacial magnetic anisotropy in magnetic insulators has been largely unexplored. Recently, interface-induced skyrmions and electrical control of magnetization have been discovered in insulator-based heterostructures, which demand a thorough understanding of interfacial interactions in these materials. We observe a substantial, tunable interfacial magnetic anisotropy between Tm_{3}Fe_{5}O_{12} epitaxial thin films and fifteen nonmagnetic materials spanning a significant portion of the periodic table, which we attribute to Rashba spin-orbit coupling. Our results show a clear distinction between nonmagnetic capping layers from the d block and the p block. This work offers a new path for controlling magnetic phases in magnetic insulators for low-loss spintronic applications.

The interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI) is responsible for the emergence of topological spin textures such as skyrmions in layered structures based on metallic and insulating ferromagnetic films. However, there is active debate on where the interfacial DMI resides in magnetic insulator systems. We investigate the topological Hall effect, which is an indication of spin textures, in Tm_{3}Fe_{5}O_{12} films capped with various metals. The results reveal that Pt, W, and Au induce strong interfacial DMI and topological Hall effect, while Ta and Ti cannot. This study also provides insights into the mechanism of electrical detection of spin textures in magnetic insulator heterostructures.

The quality of the tunnel barrier at the ferromagnet/graphene interface plays a pivotal role in graphene spin valves by circumventing the impedance mismatch problem, decreasing interfacial spin dephasing mechanisms and decreasing spin absorption back into the ferromagnet. It is thus crucial to integrate superior tunnel barriers to enhance spin transport and spin accumulation in graphene. Here, we employ a novel tunnel barrier, strontium oxide (SrO), onto graphene to realize high quality spin transport as evidenced by room-temperature spin relaxation times exceeding a nanosecond in graphene on silicon dioxide substrates. Furthermore, the smooth and pinhole-free SrO tunnel barrier grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), which can withstand large charge injection current densities, allows us to experimentally realize large spin accumulation in graphene at room temperature. This work puts graphene on the path to achieve efficient manipulation of nanomagnet magnetization using spin currents in graphene for logic and memory applications.

Skyrmions are localized magnetic spin textures whose stability has been shown theoretically to depend on material parameters including bulk Dresselhaus spin orbit coupling (SOC), interfacial Rashba SOC, and magnetic anisotropy. Here, we establish the growth of a new class of artificial skyrmion materials, namely B20 superlattices, where these parameters could be systematically tuned. Specifically, we report the successful growth of B20 superlattices comprised of single crystal thin films of FeGe, MnGe, and CrGe on Si(111) substrates. Thin films and superlattices are grown by molecular beam epitaxy and are characterized through a combination of reflection high energy electron diffraction, x-ray diffraction, and cross-sectional scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). X-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy (XEDS) distinguishes layers by elemental mapping and indicates good interface quality with relatively low levels of intermixing in the [CrGe/MnGe/FeGe] superlattice. This demonstration of epitaxial, single-crystalline B20 superlattices is a significant advance toward tunable skyrmion systems for fundamental scientific studies and applications in magnetic storage and logic., Comment: 16 pages, 7 figures

Layered Zintl phase van der Waals (vdW) materials are of interest due to their strong spin-orbit coupling and potential for high mobility. Here, we report the successful growth of large area CaGe 2 films, as a model of layered Zintl phase materials, on atomically flat Ge(111) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) using an alternating layer growth (ALG) protocol. Reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) patterns of the Ge buffer layer and CaGe 2 indicate high quality two dimensional surfaces, which is further confirmed by atomic force microscopy (AFM), showing atomically flat and uniform CaGe 2 films. The appearance of Laue oscillations in X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Kiessig fringes in the X-ray reflectivity (XRR), which are absent in co-deposited CaGe 2 , confirms the uniformity of the CaGe 2 film and the smoothness of the interface. These results demonstrate a novel method of deposition of CaGe 2 that could be also applied to other layered Zintl phase vdW materials. Also, the high quality of the CaGe 2 film is promising for the exploration of novel properties of germanane.

We report the successful growth of high-quality SrO films on highly-ordered pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) and single-layer graphene by molecular beam epitaxy. The SrO layers have (001) orientation as confirmed by x-ray diffraction (XRD) while atomic force microscopy measurements show continuous pinhole-free films having rms surface roughness of, 23 pages, 8 figures

We report experimental and theoretical evidence for the formation of chiral bobbers - an interfacial topological spin texture - in FeGe films grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). After establishing the presence of skyrmions in FeGe/Si(111) thin film samples through Lorentz transmission electron microscopy and topological Hall effect, we perform magnetization measurements that reveal an inverse relationship between film thickness and the slope of the susceptibility (d\c{hi}/dH). We present evidence for the evolution as a function of film thickness, L, from a skyrmion phase for L < LD/2 to a cone phase with chiral bobbers at the interface for L > LD/2, where LD ~ 70 nm is the FeGe pitch length. We show using micromagnetic simulations that chiral bobbers, earlier predicted to be metastable, are in fact the stable ground state in the presence of an additional interfacial Rashba Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI)., accepted to Phys. Rev. Materials

The magnetic proximity effect (MPE) is an important phenomenon for spin manipulation in spintronic devices, but to this date, researchers have been unable to demonstrate MPE using spinel ferrites, a versatile class of ferrimagnetic insulators with high Curie temperatures. In this study, magnetotransport measurements on platinum-cobalt ferrite bilayers demonstrate the presence of MPE, which results in induced ferromagnetic order in the platinum films. In contrast to earlier studies, the entire structure is grown by molecular beam epitaxy, which ensures the cleanest possible interfaces. These results enable the use of spinel ferrites for spin manipulation in future spin-logic devices.

Monolayer van der Waals (vdW) magnets provide an exciting opportunity for exploring two-dimensional (2D) magnetism for scientific and technological advances, but the intrinsic ferromagnetism has only been observed at low temperatures. Here, we report the observation of room temperature ferromagnetism in manganese selenide (MnSe$_x$) films grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). Magnetic and structural characterization provides strong evidence that in the monolayer limit, the ferromagnetism originates from a vdW manganese diselenide (MnSe$_2$) monolayer, while for thicker films it could originate from a combination of vdW MnSe$_2$ and/or interfacial magnetism of $\alpha$-MnSe(111). Magnetization measurements of monolayer MnSe$_x$ films on GaSe and SnSe$_2$ epilayers show ferromagnetic ordering with large saturation magnetization of ~ 4 Bohr magnetons per Mn, which is consistent with density functional theory calculations predicting ferromagnetism in monolayer 1T-MnSe$_2$. Growing MnSe$_x$ films on GaSe up to high thickness (~ 40 nm) produces $\alpha$-MnSe(111), and an enhanced magnetic moment (~ 2x) compared to the monolayer MnSe$_x$ samples. Detailed structural characterization by scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), and reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) reveal an abrupt and clean interface between GaSe(0001) and $\alpha$-MnSe(111). In particular, the structure measured by STEM is consistent with the presence of a MnSe$_2$ monolayer at the interface. These results hold promise for potential applications in energy efficient information storage and processing.

Earthquake engineers are typically faced with the challenge of safely and economically designing structures in highly uncertain seismic environments. Yield strength demand spectra provide basic information for the seismic design of structures and take nonlinear behavior into account. The designed structures, however, must be checked for seismic performance through dynamic analysis. Design-response spectra compatible earthquake motions (DRSCEM) are commonly used for this purpose. Because DRSCEM are strongly affected by the assigned phase characteristics, in this paper, we simulate realistic earthquake motion phase based on a stochastic process that modifies fractional Brownian motion (fBm). The parameters that control this process were determined via regression equations as functions of the earthquake magnitude and epicenter distance, which were obtained through a regression analysis that was performed on data from a database of recorded ground motions. After validating the efficiency of the modeled phase spectrum, large numbers of DRSCEMs were simulated with which several ductility demand spectra were obtained. By statistically analyzing these results, a rigorous yield seismic coefficient demand spectrum is proposed.

Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) in magnetic thin films with low coercivity is desirable for magnetic memory devices. It has been found that a (111)-oriented or textured Pt seed layer can enhance PMA and is, therefore, commonly utilized in spintronic structures. We grow (111)-oriented Pt epitaxial films via off-axis sputtering on various substrates and investigate the optimal substrate and orientation for high quality, epitaxial growth. Our results show that Pt(111) epitaxial films grow remarkably well on MgAl2O4(001) with an exceptionally narrow X-ray diffraction rocking curve. This high-quality seed layer is found to promote epitaxial growth of Pt/Co50Fe50/Pt trilayers with strong PMA comparable to many repeats of the magnetic multilayers reported previously. In addition, the Pt seed layer enhances the maximum thicknesses of Co50Fe50 that can still maintain PMA up to 1.07 nm.Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) in magnetic thin films with low coercivity is desirable for magnetic memory devices. It has been found that a (111)-oriented or textured Pt seed layer can enhance PMA and is, therefore, commonly utilized in spintronic structures. We grow (111)-oriented Pt epitaxial films via off-axis sputtering on various substrates and investigate the optimal substrate and orientation for high quality, epitaxial growth. Our results show that Pt(111) epitaxial films grow remarkably well on MgAl2O4(001) with an exceptionally narrow X-ray diffraction rocking curve. This high-quality seed layer is found to promote epitaxial growth of Pt/Co50Fe50/Pt trilayers with strong PMA comparable to many repeats of the magnetic multilayers reported previously. In addition, the Pt seed layer enhances the maximum thicknesses of Co50Fe50 that can still maintain PMA up to 1.07 nm.

Aquilaria crassna (agarwood) has been used in traditional Asian medicine to treat vomiting, rheumatism, asthma, cough and inflammation. Despite the wide range of ethno-pharmacological use of agarwood, its anti-angiogenic effect has not previously been evaluated through systematic studies. Therefore, the aim of this study was to prepare essential oils extracts from the stem bark of A. crassna native to Malaysia, and determine their anti-proliferative and anti-angiogenic activities. Stem bark samples were extracted with 80% ethanol and hydrodistillation methods. The resulting essential oils from both extraction approaches were subjected for cytotoxic activity using four cancer cell lines and one normal cell line. Hydrodistilled essential oils displayed significant cytotoxic effect against HCT 116 cells with the lowest IC50 value calculated (28.0 ± 1.5 μg/mL). Furthermore, we have investigated the effect of hydrodistilled essential oils (active extract) on angiogenesis in vitro and ex vivo, and found that essential oils directly inhibited tube formation after plating endothelial cells on matrigel. In addition, essential oils caused significant inhibition of microvessels outgrowth of rat aortic ring assay in a dose-dependent manner (P