Imaging buried magnetic domains using hard x rays

Jonathan C. Lang; J. Pollmann; Daniel Haskel; George Srajer; Jorg Maser; J. S. Jiang; Samuel D. Bader

doi:10.1117/12.450228

13 December 2001 Imaging buried magnetic domains using hard x rays

Jonathan C. Lang, J. Pollmann, Daniel Haskel, George Srajer, Jorg Maser, J. S. Jiang, Samuel D. Bader

Proceedings Volume 4499, X-Ray Micro- and Nano-Focusing: Applications and Techniques II; (2001) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.450228
Event: International Symposium on Optical Science and Technology, 2001, San Diego, CA, United States

Abstract

Images of magnetic structures in a SmCo/Fe bilayer have been obtained using a circularly polarized hard x-ray microprobe. This probe combines circularly polarizing and microfocusing optics (either Fresnel zone plate or Kirkpatrick-Baez mirrors) to provide a highly polarized, small cross-section x-ray beam in the energy range between 5 and 12 keV. By using x-rays in this energy range, we can penetrate the top layers of the sample and therefore are able to measure the magnetic domains of buried magnetic structures with a resolution of ~5 micrometers . Contrast between magnetic domains is obtained by measuring the x-ray magnetic circular dichroism signal for different points as the beam is scanned across the sample. Images of the magnetic domain structure in a 1600-A-thick buried SmCo layer of a SmCo/Fe bilayer were taken as a function of the externally applied magnetic field. These images show the nucleation of large domains ( > 100 micrometers ) whose domain walls are oriented perpendicular to the applied field direction. Upon increasing the applied field, the images show the growth of the local reversed domains as the domain walls propagate across the sample, leading to a complete reorientation of the hard magnetic layer.

Citation Download Citation

Jonathan C. Lang, J. Pollmann, Daniel Haskel, George Srajer, Jorg Maser, J. S. Jiang, and Samuel D. Bader "Imaging buried magnetic domains using hard x rays", Proc. SPIE 4499, X-Ray Micro- and Nano-Focusing: Applications and Techniques II, (13 December 2001); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.450228

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