1. Current-induced spin torques on single GdFeCo magnetic layers
- Author
-
Michel Hehn, Jaafar Ghanbaja, Heloïse Damas, Sébastien Petit-Watelot, Juan-Carlos Rojas-Sánchez, Ping Tang, Albert Fert, Elodie Martin, Sylvie Migot, Jean Loïs Bello, Aldo Arriola-Córdova, Davide Maccariello, Vincent Cros, Stéphane Mangin, Yong Xu, Shufeng Zhang, Christos Panagopoulos, Pierre Vallobra, David Céspedes-Berrocal, Institut Jean Lamour (IJL), Université de Lorraine (UL)-Institut de Chimie du CNRS (INC)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Unité mixte de physique CNRS/Thales (UMPhy CNRS/THALES), THALES-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Physics Department, University of Arizona, University of Arizona, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional de Ingeniería (UNI), Beihang University (BUAA), Division of Physics and Applied Physics [Nanyang Technological University] (SPMS-PAP-02-01), and Nanyang Technological University [Singapour]
- Subjects
spin-orbitronics ,Materials science ,Point reflection ,FOS: Physical sciences ,02 engineering and technology ,010402 general chemistry ,7. Clean energy ,01 natural sciences ,Magnetization ,amorphous ferrimagnetic GdFeCo ,Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall) ,Torque ,General Materials Science ,Absorption (electromagnetic radiation) ,Spin-½ ,spintronics ,Condensed Matter - Materials Science ,spin-orbit torque ,Condensed matter physics ,Spintronics ,Condensed Matter - Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics ,Mechanical Engineering ,Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci) ,021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology ,0104 chemical sciences ,Coupling (physics) ,Mechanics of Materials ,slef-torque ,Spin Hall effect ,[PHYS.COND.CM-MS]Physics [physics]/Condensed Matter [cond-mat]/Materials Science [cond-mat.mtrl-sci] ,Condensed Matter::Strongly Correlated Electrons ,0210 nano-technology - Abstract
Spintronics exploits spin-orbit coupling (SOC) to generate spin currents, spin torques, and, in the absence of inversion symmetry, Rashba, and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions (DMI). The widely used magnetic materials, based on 3d metals such as Fe and Co, possess a small SOC. To circumvent this shortcoming, the common practice has been to utilize the large SOC of nonmagnetic layers of 5d heavy metals (HMs), such as Pt, to generate spin currents by Spin Hall Effect (SHE) and, in turn, exert spin torques on the magnetic layers. Here, we introduce a new class of material architectures, excluding nonmagnetic 5d HMs, for high-performance spintronics operations. We demonstrate very strong current-induced torques exerted on single GdFeCo layers due to the combination of large SOC of the Gd 5d states, and inversion symmetry breaking mainly engineered by interfaces. These "self-torques" are enhanced around the magnetization compensation temperature (close to room temperature) and can be tuned by adjusting the spin absorption outside the GdFeCo layer. In other measurements, we determine the very large emission of spin current from GdFeCo. This material platform opens new perspectives to exert "self-torques" on single magnetic layers as well as to generate spin currents from a magnetic layer., Comment: 26 pages, 4 figures plus 5 pages of sup. information
- Published
- 2021