Spin pumping in ferromagnet-topological insulator-ferromagnet heterostructures.
Abstract
Topological insulators (TIs) are enticing prospects for the future of spintronics due to their large spin-orbit coupling and dissipationless, counter-propagating conduction channels in the surface state. However, a means to interact with and exploit the topological surface state remains elusive. Here, we report a study of spin pumping at the TI-ferromagnet interface, investigating spin transfer dynamics in a spin-valve like structure using element specific time-resolved x-ray magnetic circular dichroism, and ferromagnetic resonance. Gilbert damping increases approximately linearly with increasing TI thickness, indicating efficient behaviour as a spin sink. However, layer-resolved measurements suggest that a dynamic coupling is limited. These results shed new light on the spin dynamics of this novel material class, and suggest great potential for TIs in spintronic devices, through their novel magnetodynamics that persist even up to room temperature.
Citation
Baker , A A , Figueroa , A I , Collins-Mcintyre , L J , Van Der Laan , G & Hesjedal , T 2015 , ' Spin pumping in ferromagnet-topological insulator-ferromagnet heterostructures. ' , Scientific Reports , vol. 5 , 7907 . https://doi.org/10.1038/srep07907
Publication
Scientific Reports
Status
Peer reviewed
ISSN
2045-2322Type
Journal article
Rights
Copyright 2015 the Authors. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder in order to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Description
This publication arises from research funded by the John Fell Oxford University Press Research Fund. A.A.B. acknowledges funding from Diamond Light Source through a joint studentship and Wadham College through a senior scholarship. A.A.B. and L.C.M. acknowledge support from the EPSRC through doctoral training awards.Collections
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