Artificially Inhomogeneous Magnetic Materials

本项目通过探索如何通过新的和非常可控的方式制造材料来控制磁性，并评估这些磁性材料可能实现的新应用，推动了科学的进步。磁的进步是新的传感器、计算技术、能源效率和数据存储不可或缺的一部分，所有这些都影响着美国的健康、繁荣和国防。该项目还可能使在其产品中使用先进磁性材料的制造商受益，这将有助于美国保持技术优势。此外，该项目将支持培训年轻科学家，使他们熟悉现代研究技术和科学合作，并最终发展在美国科学和工程劳动力中茁壮成长所需的技能。技术摘要：本工作的目标是创建和研究包含磁性能有意分布的纳米级磁异质结构。我们将研究磁性结构中控制良好的成分梯度如何导致新功能，这些功能可能使设计与以下应用相关的新设备成为可能：磁记录和数据存储；电信;还有能量收集。重点领域包括磁膜中的热可调谐交换耦合；magnonic波导;利用自旋动力产生电能的梯度磁性结构。理解如何定义和控制磁性随温度的变化将对能量收集和能量辅助磁记录产生影响。了解磁振子如何在非均匀磁性材料中传播可能会影响电信的未来，并使降低能源需求的新型计算架构成为可能。了解自旋动力的新现象可能会导致能量收集和先进的电池技术。人工结构材料将通过薄膜沉积技术制造，其物理性质将通过磁强计、衍射、输运和中子散射与国家实验室合作来表征。

Non-Technical Abstract This project advances the progress of science by exploring how to control magnetic properties by making materials in new and very well controlled ways, and evaluating what new applications may be realized with such magnetic materials. Advances in magnetism are integral to new sensors, computing technologies, energy efficiency, and data storage, all of which impact US health, prosperity, and national defense. The project may also benefit manufacturers that use advanced magnetic materials in their products, which will help the US maintain technological superiority. Additionally, this project will support the training of young scientists so that they become familiar with modern research techniques and scientific collaboration, and ultimately develop the skills needed thrive in the US scientific and engineering workforce. Technical AbstractThe goals of this work are to create and investigate nanoscale magnetic heterostructures that contain intentional distributions of magnetic properties. We will investigate how well-controlled composition gradients in magnetic structures can lead to new functions that may enable the design of new devices relevant to applications such as: magnetic recording and data storage; telecommunications; and energy harvesting. Focus areas include thermally tunable exchange coupling in magnetic films; magnonic waveguides; and graded magnetic structures for electrical energy generation via spin motive forces. Understanding how to define and control magnetic properties with temperature will have implications for energy harvesting and energy assisted magnetic recording. Understanding how magnons propagate in inhomogeneous magnetic materials may impact the future of telecommunications and enable novel computing architectures with reduced energy requirements. Understanding the novel phenomenon of spin motive force may lead to energy harvesting and advanced battery technologies. The artificially structured materials will be fabricated by thin film deposition techniques, and their physical properties will be characterized using magnetometry, diffraction, transport, and neutron scattering in collaboration with national laboratories.