Periodicity staircase in a centrosymmetric Fe/Gd magnetic thin film system

Singh, Arnab; Li, Junli; Montoya, Sergio A.; Morley, Sophie; Fischer, Peter; Kevan, Steve D.; Fullerton, Eric E.; Yao, Dao-Xin; Datta, Trinanjan; Roy, Sujoy

doi:10.1038/s41535-023-00613-3

Title: Periodicity staircase in a centrosymmetric Fe/Gd magnetic thin film system

Journal Article · 02 January 2024 · npj Quantum Materials

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41535-023-00613-3 · OSTI ID:2274976

Singh, Arnab; Li, Junli; Montoya, Sergio A.;

; Fischer, Peter; Kevan, Steve D.; Fullerton, Eric E.;

;

Abstract The presence of multiple competing periodicities may result in a system to go through states with modulated periodicities, an example of which is the self-similar staircase-like structure called the Devil’s Staircase. Herein we report on a novel staircase structure of domain periodicity in an amorphous and centrosymmetric Fe/Gd magnetic thin film system wherein the reciprocal space wavevector Q due to the ordered stripe domains does not evolve continuously, rather exhibits a staircase structure. Resonant X-ray scattering experiments show jumps in the periodicity of the stripe domains as a function of an external magnetic field. When resolved in components, the length-scale step change along Q _x was found to be an integral multiple of a minimum step height of 7 nm, which resembles closely to the exchange length of the system. Modeling the magnetic texture in the Fe/Gd system as an achiral spin arrangement, we have been able to reproduce the steps in the magnetization using a Landau-Lifshitz spin dynamics calculation. Our results indicate that anisotropy and not the dipolar interaction is the dominant cause for the staircase pattern, thereby revealing the effect of achiral magnetism.

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Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-05CH11231

OSTI ID:: 2274976

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 2337833

Journal Information:: npj Quantum Materials, Journal Name: npj Quantum Materials Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 9; ISSN 2397-4648

Publisher:: Nature Publishing GroupCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United Kingdom

Language:: English

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