Electric Field Control of Fe Nano Magnets: Towards Metallic Nonvolatile Data Storage Devices

• Toyo Kazu Yamada

• Lukas Gerhard

• Timofey Balashov

• Albert F. Takács

• Rien J. H. Wesselink

• Wulf Wulfhekel

Abstract

Magnetoelectric coupling at metal surfaces opens up a new possibility for metallic nonvolatile magnetic data-storage devices, in which the magnetic bits are controlled by an electric field. We studied the atomic and magnetic order in bilayer Fe nano-islands grown on a Cu(111) substrate with a scanning tunneling microscopy setup in ultra high vacuum at 4.5 K. Electric field pulses (10 8 –10 9 V/m) were found to be able to cause a displacement of the Fe atoms, switching simultaneously the crystalline and the magnetic order, which is the prove of magnetoelectric coupling at the metallic Fe surface. We also succeeded in controlling the direction of the switching by the polarity of the electric field.

Journal

• Japanese Journal of Applied Physics

  Japanese Journal of Applied Physics 50 (8S3), 08LA03-, 2011-08-01

  IOP Publishing

Keywords

• General Physics and Astronomy
• General Engineering

Details

• CRID: 1360566396809888768
• NII Article ID: 210000071127
• DOI: 10.1143/jjap.50.08la03
• ISSN: 13474065
• ISSN: 00214922
• Web Site: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1143/JJAP.50.08LA03
• Web Site: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1143/JJAP.50.08LA03/pdf
• Data Source:
  • Crossref
  • CiNii Articles
  • KAKEN