Imaging of magnetic excitations in nanostructures with near-field microwave microscopy

• Published in: Journal of magnetism and magnetic materials Vol. 546; p. 168870
• Main Authors: Berweger, Samuel, Tyrell-Ead, Robert, Chang, Houchen, Wu, Mingzhong, Zhu, Na, Tang, Hong X., Nembach, Hans, Karl Stupic, T., Russek, Stephen, Mitch Wallis, T., Kabos, Pavel
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 15-03-2022; Elsevier BV
• Subjects: Atomic force microscopes; Atomic force microscopy; Broadband; Excitation; Imaging techniques; Microscopes; Microscopy; Microwave; Near fields; Near-field microscopy; Optics; Room temperature; Spatial distribution; Spatial resolution; Spin-waves; Thin films; Yttrium; Yttrium iron garnet (YIG); Yttrium-iron garnet; Microwave; Spin-waves; Near-field microscopy; Yttrium iron garnet (YIG)
• ISSN: 0304-8853; 1873-4766
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jmmm.2021.168870

We present images of spin-wave excitations in a patterned yttrium iron garnet (YIG) thin film obtained by use of near-field microwave microscopy, which can achieve spatial resolution as high as 50 nm. Visualization of magnetic excitations is an enticing prospect for high-speed, high-density magnetic logic and storage applications, which has spurred the development of new magnetic microscopy and imaging techniques in recent years. Here we present a novel approach for local imaging of magnetic modes excited at room temperature with sub-diffraction-limited spatial resolution. This approach is based on a special atomic force microscope with broadband GHz capability for imaging the spatial distribution of dynamic magnetic excitations in patterned magnetic structures. Due to the inherent sub-wavelength, nanometer-scale spatial resolution of near-field scanning probe techniques, this approach has potential for a significant improvement in spatial resolution over optical techniques.