High-resolution fully vectorial scanning Kerr magnetometer

Journal Article · Sun May 15 00:00:00 EDT 2016 · Review of Scientific Instruments

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4948595· OSTI ID:22598035

Flajšman, Lukáš; Vaňatka, Marek ^[1]; Urbánek, Michal; Šikola, Tomáš ^[1]; Křižáková, Viola; Turčan, Igor ^[2]

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1. CEITEC BUT, Brno University of Technology, Technická 10, 616 00 Brno (Czech Republic)
2. Institute of Physical Engineering, Brno University of Technology, Technická 2, 616 69 Brno (Czech Republic)

We report on the development of a high-resolution scanning magnetometer, which fully exploits the vectorial nature of the magneto-optical Kerr effect. The three-dimensional nature of magnetization is at the basis of many micromagnetic phenomena and from these data, we can fully characterize magnetization processes of nanostructures in static and dynamic regimes. Our scanning Kerr magnetometer uses a high numerical aperture microscope objective where the incident light beam can be deterministically deviated from the objective symmetry axis, therefore, both in-plane (via the longitudinal Kerr effect) and out-of-plane (via the polar Kerr effect) components of the magnetization vector may be detected. These components are then separated by exploiting the symmetries of the polar and longitudinal Kerr effects. From four consecutive measurements, we are able to directly obtain the three orthogonal components of the magnetization vector with a resolution of 600 nm. Performance of the apparatus is demonstrated by a measurement of 3D magnetization vector maps showing out-of-plane domains and in-plane domain walls in an yttrium-iron-garnet film and on a study of magnetization reversal in a 4-μm-wide magnetic disk.

• OSTI ID: 22598035
• Journal Information: Review of Scientific Instruments, Vol. 87, Issue 5; Other Information: (c) 2016 Author(s); Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0034-6748
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
APERTURES
FERRITE GARNETS
IRON
KERR EFFECT
MAGNETIC DISKS
MAGNETIZATION
MAGNETOMETERS
MICROSCOPES
NANOSTRUCTURES
RESOLUTION
THREE-DIMENSIONAL CALCULATIONS
THREE-DIMENSIONAL LATTICES
VECTORS
VISIBLE RADIATION
YTTRIUM