Para o desenvolvimento da nanociência atual há forte demanda por equipamentos capazes de caracterizar sistemas em escalas da ordem nanométrica. Este contexto impulsionou o desenvolvimento de microscópios ópticos de varredura em campopróximo (Scanning Near-field Optical Microscope SNOM). Diferentemente da microscopia óptica tradicional, os SNOMs detectam a radiação eletromagnética evanescente e, conseqüentemente, a resolução não é limitada pelo critério de Rayleigh. No Laboratório de Materiais Magnéticos IFUSP desenvolvemos um SNOM sensível a efeitos Kerr magnetoópticos (MO-SNOM). Dessa maneira, associamos a alta resolução da técnica à alta sensibilidade dos efeitos magnetoópticos. Trata-se se uma área relativamente pouco explorada e carente de resultados sistemáticos na literatura. Utilizando o MO-SNOM, caracterizamos partículas microestruturadas de Co70.4Fe4.6Si15B10 amorfo com dimensões de 16x16x0.08 microm3 e 4x4x0.08 microm3. Os resultados compreendem dezenas de imagens de susceptibilidade magnetoóptica diferencial com resolução melhor que 200 nm e curvas de histerese local. Em primeira análise, a demonstração de resultados sistemáticos ajuda a estabelecer a técnica. O comportamento magnético das partículas, estudadas sob várias condições de campo aplicado, se mostrou determinado basicamente pela anisotropia de forma. As curvas de histerese local mostraram comportamentos intrinsecamente locais e motivaram uma interessante discussão sobre os parâmetros de caracterização magnética convencionais. As medidas realizadas indicam que o efeito Kerr magnetoótico transversal em campopróximo é similar ao campo-distante. Os resultados são fortemente sustentados por medidas de microscopia magnetoóptica de campo-distante, simulações micromagnéticas e medidas de microscopia de força magnética. Medidas complementares revelam o potencial do MO-SNOM para caracterizações de objetos extensos quanto a potenciais de pinning. Além disso, medidas em filmes finos de NiFe/FeMn acoplados por exchange-bias evidenciam a alta sensibilidade do MO-SNOM, estimada de DM ~ 2 x 10-12 emu. / To support nanosciences evolution, there is a strong demand for developing new instrumentation devoted to nano-scale characterization. In this context, the development of the Scanning Near-field Optical Microscope (SNOM) took place. In contrast to traditional optical microscopes, SNOM deals with evanescent electromagnetic radiation and, consequently, the resolution is no longer limited by the Rayleigh criterion. At Laboratório de Materiais Magnéticos (LMM) IFUSP a SNOM devoted to magneto-optical Kerr effect measurements (MO-SNOM) has been developed. The MOSNOM associates the high resolution of the near-field technique to the high sensibility of the magneto-optical Kerr effect. Near-field magneto-optical microscopy is not yet wellestablished and there is a lack of systematic results in the literature. Using the MO-SNOM, amorphous Co70.4Fe4.6Si15B10 particles with 16x16x0.08 microm3 and 4x4x0.08 microm3 dimensions were studied. With resolution better than 200 nm, several magneto-optical differential susceptibility images and local hysteresis loops were obtained. The systematic results uphold the establishment of this new technique. Under the different applied field conditions, the magnetic behavior of the particles was found to be determined by shape anisotropy. Local hysteresis loops presented shapes intrinsic of local field induced process. The unusual hystesesis loops motivated interesting discussion about the conventional magnetic parameters. The MO-SNOM measurements indicate that the near-field transverse magneto-optical Kerr effect is similar to the far-field case. The results are highly supported by far-field magneto-optical microscopy, micromagnetic simulations and magnetic force microscopy measurements. Complementary measurements indicate the MO-SNOM potential to extensive magnetic surface characterization related to pinning potential distribution. Furthermore, measurements on the exchange-bias coupled NiFe/FeMn thin films make evident the MO-SNOM high sensitivity, estimated to be DeltaM ~ 2 x 10-12 emu.

The concept of percolated perpendicular media (PPM) for magnetic data storage is expected to surpass the areal storage density of 1 Tbit in -², which is regarded as the fundamental limit of conventional granular CoCrPt:oxide based recording media. PPM consist of a continuous ferromagnetic thin film with densely distributed defects acting as pinning sites for magnetic domain walls. In this study, practical realizations of PPM were fabricated by the deposition of [Co/Pt]8 multilayers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy onto nanoperforated templates with various perforation diameters and periods. The structural defects given by the templates serve as pinning sites for the magnetic domain walls within the [Co/Pt]8 multilayers. Magnetometry at both the integral and the local level was employed to investigate the influence of the template on the magnetization reversal and the domain wall pinning. It was found, that magnetic domains can be pinned at the ultimate limit, between three adjacent pinning sites. The coercivity and the depinning field, which both are a measure for the strength of the magnetic domain wall pinning, were found to increase with increasing perforation diameter. The size of magnetic domains within the magnetic film appeared not to depend solely on the diameter of the nanoperforations or on the period of the template, but on the ration between diameter and period. By means of micromagnetic simulations it was found, that the presence of ferromagnetic material within the pinning site given supports the pinning of magnetic domain walls, compared to a pinning site that is solely given by a hole in the magnetic thin film. Investigation of the evolution of the magnetization in magnetic fields smaller than the coercive field revealed, that the energy barrier against thermally induced magnetization reversal is sufficiently large to provide long-term (> 10 years) stability of an arbitrary magnetization state. This could also be qualitatively supported by micromagnetic simulations. Static read/write tests with conventional hard disk recording heads revealed the possibility of imprinting bit patterns into the PPM under study. The minimum bit pitch that could be read back thereby depended on the period of the nanoperforated template.

La dynamique des parois de domaine magnétiques (DW) soulève actuellement un très fort intérêt à la fois du point de vue fondamental mais aussi en lien avec ses applications dans des dispositifs logique et mémoire. Des dispositifs nouveaux basés sur les DW ont déjà été proposés, par exemple présentant des très fortes densités de stockage et des taux de transfert élevés pour un remplacement des disques durs. De plus dans les Mémoires Magnétiques à Accès Aléatoire (MRAM), identifiées comme l'une des solutions les plus prometteuses pour le remplacement des DRAM et SRAM, le retournement de l'aimantation implique une propagation des DW. Le contrôle de la dynamique des DW sous courant est longtemps resté un challenge, principalement à cause d'imperfections dans les matériaux utilisés. Des déplacements rapides et contrôlé des DW au moyen d'un courant ont été reportés il y a quelques années seulement dans des multicouches présentant une asymétrie d'inversion (SIA). Plus récemment un mécanisme a été proposé basé sur la présence de couple de spin orbite (SOT) et de l'interaction Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (DMI), tout deux trouvant leur origine dans l'interaction spin-orbite et nécessitant une SIA.Mon objectif initial était de tester ce modèle dans deux systèmes présentant différents SIA. Dans des multicouches Pt/Co/Pt à faible SIA, j'ai étudié la propagation des DW sous courant et sous champ et j'ai mis en évidence l'existence d'un amortissement chiral. Ce phénomène nouveau, pendant de DMI pour les mécanismes dissipatifs, influence à la fois la dynamique sous courant et sous champ et doit être pris en compte pour avoir une description complète des mécanismes. Dans des multicouches Pt/Co/AlOx à fort SIA, j'ai étudié de nouvelles géométries pour lesquelles le mouvement de la paroi de domaine et la direction du courant ne sont pas colinéaires. J'ai mis en évidence un déplacement asymétrique des DW en fonction de cette non-colinéarité qui ne peut pas être expliquée avec un modèle simple DMI+SOT. En se basant sur ces résultats expérimentaux, j'ai introduit un nouveau concept de dispositifs, appelé « origami magnétique » : la forme du dispositif gouverne le mécanisme de retournement. Ce concept apporte une grande flexibilité dans la construction de mémoires magnétiques non volatiles, rapides et peu gourmandes en énergie : des fonctionnalités différentes peuvent être obtenues sur un même wafer simplement par la maîtrise de la forme des différents éléments. Je montre la preuve de concept de deux dispositifs. / Magnetic domain wall (DW) dynamics is currently attracting tremendous interest both from a fundamental point of view as well as in relation with emerging magnetic memory and logic devices. New DW-based devices were recently proposed, for example to replace hard drive disks with higher density and faster date transfer. Moreover, in Magnetic Random Access Memory (MRAM), identified as one of the most promising candidate for DRAM and SRAM replacement, switching occurs through DW propagation. Control of current induced DW dynamics has long been a challenge mainly due to material imperfections. Only some years ago, fast and controllable motions were reported in multilayers presenting structural inversion asymmetry (SIA). More recently, a mechanism was proposed based on the presence of spin orbit torques and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI), both phenomena originating from the spin orbit interaction and needing (SIA).My initial objective was to test this model in two systems presenting different SIA. In Pt/Co/Pt multilayers with weak SIA, I studied both current and field induced DW motion and evidenced a chiral damping. This new phenomena, counterpart of the DMI for the dissipative aspects, influences both current and field induced dynamics and has to be taken into account for a complete picture of the mechanism. In Pt/Co/AlOx multilayers with strong SIA, I studied new geometries where the DW motion the and current flow are not collinear. I evidenced asymmetric DW motion as a function of this non-collinearity that cannot be explained with a simple SOT+DMI model. Based on these experimental results I introduce a new device concept named “magnetic origami”: the shape of the device governs the switching mechanism. This concept provides large flexibility to construct fast, low power non-volatile magnetic memory: different functionalities can be achieved on a wafer by simply mastering the shape of the different elements. I show the proof of concept of two such devices.

Para o desenvolvimento da nanociência atual há forte demanda por equipamentos capazes de caracterizar sistemas em escalas da ordem nanométrica. Este contexto impulsionou o desenvolvimento de microscópios ópticos de varredura em campopróximo (Scanning Near-field Optical Microscope SNOM). Diferentemente da microscopia óptica tradicional, os SNOMs detectam a radiação eletromagnética evanescente e, conseqüentemente, a resolução não é limitada pelo critério de Rayleigh. No Laboratório de Materiais Magnéticos IFUSP desenvolvemos um SNOM sensível a efeitos Kerr magnetoópticos (MO-SNOM). Dessa maneira, associamos a alta resolução da técnica à alta sensibilidade dos efeitos magnetoópticos. Trata-se se uma área relativamente pouco explorada e carente de resultados sistemáticos na literatura. Utilizando o MO-SNOM, caracterizamos partículas microestruturadas de Co70.4Fe4.6Si15B10 amorfo com dimensões de 16x16x0.08 microm3 e 4x4x0.08 microm3. Os resultados compreendem dezenas de imagens de susceptibilidade magnetoóptica diferencial com resolução melhor que 200 nm e curvas de histerese local. Em primeira análise, a demonstração de resultados sistemáticos ajuda a estabelecer a técnica. O comportamento magnético das partículas, estudadas sob várias condições de campo aplicado, se mostrou determinado basicamente pela anisotropia de forma. As curvas de histerese local mostraram comportamentos intrinsecamente locais e motivaram uma interessante discussão sobre os parâmetros de caracterização magnética convencionais. As medidas realizadas indicam que o efeito Kerr magnetoótico transversal em campopróximo é similar ao campo-distante. Os resultados são fortemente sustentados por medidas de microscopia magnetoóptica de campo-distante, simulações micromagnéticas e medidas de microscopia de força magnética. Medidas complementares revelam o potencial do MO-SNOM para caracterizações de objetos extensos quanto a potenciais de pinning. Além disso, medidas em filmes finos de NiFe/FeMn acoplados por exchange-bias evidenciam a alta sensibilidade do MO-SNOM, estimada de DM ~ 2 x 10-12 emu. / To support nanosciences evolution, there is a strong demand for developing new instrumentation devoted to nano-scale characterization. In this context, the development of the Scanning Near-field Optical Microscope (SNOM) took place. In contrast to traditional optical microscopes, SNOM deals with evanescent electromagnetic radiation and, consequently, the resolution is no longer limited by the Rayleigh criterion. At Laboratório de Materiais Magnéticos (LMM) IFUSP a SNOM devoted to magneto-optical Kerr effect measurements (MO-SNOM) has been developed. The MOSNOM associates the high resolution of the near-field technique to the high sensibility of the magneto-optical Kerr effect. Near-field magneto-optical microscopy is not yet wellestablished and there is a lack of systematic results in the literature. Using the MO-SNOM, amorphous Co70.4Fe4.6Si15B10 particles with 16x16x0.08 microm3 and 4x4x0.08 microm3 dimensions were studied. With resolution better than 200 nm, several magneto-optical differential susceptibility images and local hysteresis loops were obtained. The systematic results uphold the establishment of this new technique. Under the different applied field conditions, the magnetic behavior of the particles was found to be determined by shape anisotropy. Local hysteresis loops presented shapes intrinsic of local field induced process. The unusual hystesesis loops motivated interesting discussion about the conventional magnetic parameters. The MO-SNOM measurements indicate that the near-field transverse magneto-optical Kerr effect is similar to the far-field case. The results are highly supported by far-field magneto-optical microscopy, micromagnetic simulations and magnetic force microscopy measurements. Complementary measurements indicate the MO-SNOM potential to extensive magnetic surface characterization related to pinning potential distribution. Furthermore, measurements on the exchange-bias coupled NiFe/FeMn thin films make evident the MO-SNOM high sensitivity, estimated to be DeltaM ~ 2 x 10-12 emu.

The concept of percolated perpendicular media (PPM) for magnetic data storage is expected to surpass the areal storage density of 1 Tbit in -², which is regarded as the fundamental limit of conventional granular CoCrPt:oxide based recording media. PPM consist of a continuous ferromagnetic thin film with densely distributed defects acting as pinning sites for magnetic domain walls. In this study, practical realizations of PPM were fabricated by the deposition of [Co/Pt]8 multilayers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy onto nanoperforated templates with various perforation diameters and periods. The structural defects given by the templates serve as pinning sites for the magnetic domain walls within the [Co/Pt]8 multilayers. Magnetometry at both the integral and the local level was employed to investigate the influence of the template on the magnetization reversal and the domain wall pinning. It was found, that magnetic domains can be pinned at the ultimate limit, between three adjacent pinning sites. The coercivity and the depinning field, which both are a measure for the strength of the magnetic domain wall pinning, were found to increase with increasing perforation diameter. The size of magnetic domains within the magnetic film appeared not to depend solely on the diameter of the nanoperforations or on the period of the template, but on the ration between diameter and period. By means of micromagnetic simulations it was found, that the presence of ferromagnetic material within the pinning site given supports the pinning of magnetic domain walls, compared to a pinning site that is solely given by a hole in the magnetic thin film. Investigation of the evolution of the magnetization in magnetic fields smaller than the coercive field revealed, that the energy barrier against thermally induced magnetization reversal is sufficiently large to provide long-term (> 10 years) stability of an arbitrary magnetization state. This could also be qualitatively supported by micromagnetic simulations. Static read/write tests with conventional hard disk recording heads revealed the possibility of imprinting bit patterns into the PPM under study. The minimum bit pitch that could be read back thereby depended on the period of the nanoperforated template.