Institutional development · Research, innovation and assessment · Germany
Duisburg-Essen researchers link laser demagnetisation of thin iron films to interface order
A University of Duisburg-Essen team and Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin report in Advanced Science that magnetic order at interfaces explains why thinner iron films lose magnetisation more readily under laser pulses.
Why it matters: The University of Duisburg-Essen team and its Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin partners now have a published account of how iron film thickness shapes laser demagnetisation.
According to the announcement, a laser pulse demagnetises an iron film more readily as the film gets thinner.
A team from the University of Duisburg-Essen, collaborating with Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin and further partners, says the explanation lies in how magnetism is ordered where the material meets its boundaries.
The study has appeared in the journal Advanced Science.
The researchers suggest the work may eventually help in developing new magnetic data storage technologies.
Editor’s view
Scott James, Research and Innovation Editor
For the Duisburg-Essen team and its Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin partners, the published study attributes the stronger effect in thinner iron films to interface magnetic order, and the researchers describe any data storage application as a long-term prospect.
