Ultrafast demagnetization in bulk nickel induced by X-ray photons tuned to Ni M3 and L3 absorption edges

Abstract

Studies of light-induced demagnetization started with the experiment performed by Beaupaire et al. on Ni. Here, we present theoretical predictions for X-ray induced demagnetization of nickel, with X-ray photon energies tuned to its M_3 and L_3 absorption edges. We show that the specific feature in the density of states in the d-band of Ni, i.e., a sharp peak located just above the Fermi level, strongly influences the change of the predicted magnetic signal, making it stronger than in the previously studied case of X-ray demagnetized cobalt. It impacts also the value of Curie temperature for Ni. We believe that this finding will inspire dedicated experiments investigating magnetic processes in X-ray irradiated nickel and cobalt.