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Coexistence of Low Damping and Strong Magnetoelastic Coupling in Epitaxial Spinel Ferrite Thin Films
Author(s) -
Emori Satoru,
Gray Benjamin A.,
Jeon HyungMin,
Peoples Joseph,
Schmitt Maxwell,
Mahalingam Krishnamurthy,
Hill Madelyn,
McConney Michael E.,
Gray Matthew T.,
Alaan Urusa S.,
Bornstein Alexander C.,
Shafer Padraic,
N'Diaye Alpha T.,
Arenholz Elke,
Haugstad Greg,
Meng KengYuan,
Yang Fengyuan,
Li Dongyao,
Mahat Sushant,
Cahill David G.,
Dhagat Pallavi,
Jander Albrecht,
Sun Nian X.,
Suzuki Yuri,
Howe Brandon M.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
advanced materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 10.707
H-Index - 527
eISSN - 1521-4095
pISSN - 0935-9648
DOI - 10.1002/adma.201701130
Subject(s) - magnetostriction , materials science , magnetic damping , condensed matter physics , ferrite (magnet) , anisotropy , thin film , magnetization dynamics , magnetic anisotropy , coupling (piping) , magnetization , spintronics , magnetic field , composite material , ferromagnetism , nanotechnology , optics , vibration , acoustics , physics , quantum mechanics
Low‐loss magnetization dynamics and strong magnetoelastic coupling are generally mutually exclusive properties due to opposing dependencies on spin–orbit interactions. So far, the lack of low‐damping, magnetostrictive ferrite films has hindered the development of power‐efficient magnetoelectric and acoustic spintronic devices. Here, magnetically soft epitaxial spinel NiZnAl‐ferrite thin films with an unusually low Gilbert damping parameter (<3 × 10 −3 ), as well as strong magnetoelastic coupling evidenced by a giant strain‐induced anisotropy field (≈1 T) and a sizable magnetostriction coefficient (≈10 ppm), are reported. This exceptional combination of low intrinsic damping and substantial magnetostriction arises from the cation chemistry of NiZnAl‐ferrite. At the same time, the coherently strained film structure suppresses extrinsic damping, enables soft magnetic behavior, and generates large easy‐plane magnetoelastic anisotropy. These findings provide a foundation for a new class of low‐loss, magnetoelastic thin film materials that are promising for spin‐mechanical devices.