Article abstract


Nature Physics 1, 172 - 176 (2005)
doi:10.1038/nphys173

Subject Categories: Condensed-matter physics | Nanotechnology

Soliton-pair dynamics in patterned ferromagnetic ellipses

Kristen S. Buchanan1, Pierre E. Roy1,2, Marcos Grimsditch1, Frank Y. Fradin1, Konstantin Yu. Guslienko1, Sam D. Bader1 and Valentyn Novosad1


Confinement alters the energy landscape of nanoscale magnets, leading to the appearance of unusual magnetic states, such as vortices, for example. Many basic questions concerning dynamical and interaction effects remain unanswered, and nanomagnets are convenient model systems for studying these fundamental physical phenomena. A single vortex in restricted geometry, also known as a non-localized soliton, possesses a characteristic translational excitation mode that corresponds to spiral-like motion of the vortex core around its equilibrium position. Here, we investigate, by a microwave reflection technique, the dynamics of magnetic soliton pairs confined in lithographically defined, ferromagnetic Permalloy ellipses. Through a comparison with micromagnetic simulations, the observed strong resonances in the subgigahertz frequency range can be assigned to the translational modes of vortex pairs with parallel or antiparallel core polarizations. Vortex polarizations play a negligible role in the static interaction between two vortices, but their effect dominates the dynamics.

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  1. Materials Science Division and Center for Nanoscale Materials, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439, USA
  2. Department of Engineering Science, Uppsala University, Box 534, SE-751 21 Uppsala, Sweden

Correspondence to: Valentyn Novosad1 e-mail: novosad@anl.gov

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