Magnetic Proximity Effect Free Spin Hall Magnetoresistance in YIG∖Pd

Magnetic Proximity Effect (MPE) at the interface of Y3Fe5O[Formula: see text] (YIG)[Formula: see text]Pd is investigated using X-ray Magnetic Circular Dichroism (XMCD) at the Pd-edges. No evidence of MPE is found even for Pd film thicknesses down to 0.5[Formula: see text]nm. The same bilayers have been thereafter used for inverse spin Hall Effect (ISHE) measurements using the spin-pumping technique. A large signal can be observed at the ferromagnetic resonance. The angular dependence of the Pd dc resistance has been measured as a function of the YIG magnetization direction. It shows the expected dependences for the spin Hall magnetoresistance (SMR). Our methodology allows to state that ISHE and SMR are intrinsic phenomena whose underlying physics is uncorrelated to MPE.