Simultaneous spin pumping and spin Seebeck experiments with thermal control of the magnetic damping in bilayers of yttrium iron garnet and heavy metals: YIG/Pt and YIG/IrMn

Abstract

We report experiments on the generation of spin currents by simultaneous spin pumping effect and spin Seebeck effect (SSE) in bilayers of yttrium iron garnet (YIG)/Pt and YIG/IrMn. The experiments are performed with the ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) in YIG excited by microwave radiation in the range of 2--6 GHz and subject to a temperature gradient as in studies of the longitudinal SSE. Measurements of the FMR linewidth show that the magnetic damping in YIG can be controlled by spin currents generated by the thermal gradient across the thickness of the bilayer. The simultaneous measurements allow the determination of the spin current generated by SSE and a quantitative comparison of the models proposed for thermal control of the magnetic damping with experimental data. We show that the model based on the flow of angular momentum into or out of the YIG film carried by the coherent part of the spin current influenced by the temperature gradient is the one that best accounts for the observed change in the damping.