Abstract
We show that in a uniform thickness NiO(111)/Fe(110) epitaxial bilayer system, at given temperature near 300 K, two magnetic states with orthogonal spin orientations can be stabilized in antiferromagnetic NiO. Field-free, reversible switching between these two antiferromagnetic states is demonstrated. The observed phenomena arise from the unique combination of precisely tuned interface magnetic anisotropy, thermal hysteresis of spin reorientation transition and interfacial ferromagnet/antiferromagnet exchange coupling. The possibility of field-free switching between two magnetic states in an antiferromagnet is fundamentally interesting and can lead to new ideas in heat assisted magnetic recording technology.
Highlights
Magnetic anisotropy (MA), a relativistic manifestation of the coupling between the electron spin and the orbital moment, is a key parameter of magnetic materials
In epitaxial NiO (111)/Fe(110) bilayers, we take the advantage of the intrinsic hysteresis of the temperature induced spin reorientation transition (SRT) in Fe(110) layer and at given temperature we directly document the existence of two orthogonal magnetic states in the AFM NiO(111) sublayer
We show that fine tuning of the well-defined uniaxial magnetic anisotropy of the ferromagnet leads to either of the two orthogonal magnetic states in the adjacent
Summary
Magnetic anisotropy (MA), a relativistic manifestation of the coupling between the electron spin and the orbital moment, is a key parameter of magnetic materials. In epitaxial NiO (111)/Fe(110) bilayers, we take the advantage of the intrinsic hysteresis of the temperature induced SRT in Fe(110) layer and at given temperature we directly document the existence of two orthogonal magnetic states in the AFM NiO(111) sublayer.
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