Magneto-optic Kerr effect in a spin-polarized zero-moment ferrimagnet

Abstract

The magneto-optical Kerr effect (MOKE) is often assumed to be proportional to the magnetisation of a magnetically ordered metallic sample; in metallic ferrimagnets with chemically distinct sublattices, such as rare-earth transition-metal alloys, it depends on the difference between the sublattice contributions. Here we show that in a highly spin polarized, fully compensated ferrimagnet, where the sublattices are chemically similar, MOKE is observed even when the net moment is strictly zero. We analyse the spectral ellipsometry and MOKE of Mn 2 Ru x Ga, and show that this behaviour is due to a highly spin-polarized conduction band dominated by one of the two manganese sublattices which creates helicity-dependent reflectivity determined by a broad Drude tail. Our findings open new prospects for studying spin dynamics in the infra-red.

arXiv comment7 pages, 7 figures

References in corpus (6)

• Interface-driven topological Hall effect in SrRuO${}_3$-SrIrO${}_3$ bilayer
• Designing a fully-compensated half-metallic ferrimagnet
• Magneto-optical study of magnetization reversal asymmetry in exchange bias
• Exchange coupling of a perpendicular ferromagnet to a half-metallic compensated ferrimagnet via a thin hafnium interlayer
• Imaging Domains in a Zero-Moment Half Metal
• Study of the Effect of Annealing on the Properties of Mn2RuxGa Thin Films

Cited by in corpus (10)

• Single pulse all-optical toggle switching of magnetization without Gd: The example of Mn2RuxGa
• Two-dimensional fully-compensated Ferrimagnetism
• Ultra-fast Double Pulse All-Optical Re-switching of a Ferrimagnet
• Magnetocrystalline anisotropy and exchange probed by high-field anomalous Hall effect in fully-compensated half-metallic Mn2RuxGa thin films
• Magnetization dynamics of the compensated ferrimagnet $M{n}_{2}R{u}_{x}Ga$
• Sub-picosecond exchange-relaxation in the compensated ferrimagnet Mn${}_2$Ru${}_x$Ga
• First-principles insights into all-optical spin switching in the half-metallic Heusler ferrimagnet Mn${}_2$RuGa
• Magnetic reversal and pinning in a perpendicular zero moment half-metal
• Analytical dispersion relation for forward volume spin waves in ferrimagnets near the angular momentum compensation condition
• Electric-Field-induced Two-Dimensional Fully Compensated Ferrimagnetism and Emergent Transport Phenomena