Ultrafast magnetization dynamics in the half-metallic Heusler alloy Co2Cr0.6Fe0.4Al

Ultrafast demagnetization upon excitation with intense laser pulses has been observed for a variety of ferromagnetic materials. In half‐metals, long demagnetization times are expected due to the band gap for one spin direction. We have investigated the theoretically half‐metallic Heusler alloy Co2Cr...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physica Status Solidi (b) 2011-10, Vol.248 (10), p.2330-2337
Main Authors: Wüstenberg, Jan-Peter, Steil, Daniel, Alebrand, Sabine, Roth, Tobias, Aeschlimann, Martin, Cinchetti, Mirko
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Demagnetization
Ferromagnetic materials
half-metals
Heusler alloys
Lasers
Magnetization
Polarization
Recovery
spin polarization
Transition metals
ultrafast magnetization dynamics
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Summary:Ultrafast demagnetization upon excitation with intense laser pulses has been observed for a variety of ferromagnetic materials. In half‐metals, long demagnetization times are expected due to the band gap for one spin direction. We have investigated the theoretically half‐metallic Heusler alloy Co2Cr0.6Fe0.4Al (CCFA), using the time‐resolved magnetooptical Kerr effect. A demagnetization time in the range of typical transition metal ferromagnets with lower spin polarization has been found, while magnetization recovery proceeds on a slower time scale. The results are discussed in the context of recent models and experimental results. We propose that for Heusler alloys the initial stage of recovery could be a better measure for the spin polarization than the demagnetization time. A simple estimate leads to a bulk spin polarization value of 0.86 for CCFA.
ISSN:0370-1972
1521-3951
1521-3951
DOI:10.1002/pssb.201147087