Néel-Vector Switching and THz Spin-Wave Excitation in Mn${}_2$Au due to Femtosecond Spin-Transfer Torques

Abstract

Efficient and fast manipulation of antiferromagnets has to date remained a challenging task, hindering their application in spintronic devices. For ultrafast operation of such devices, it is highly desirable to be able to control the antiferromagnetic order within picoseconds - a timescale that is difficult to achieve with electrical circuits. Here, we demonstrate that bursts of spin-polarized hot-electron currents emerging due to laser-induced ultrafast demagnetization are able to efficiently excite spin dynamics in antiferromagnetic Mn${}_2$Au by exerting a spin-transfer torque on femtosecond timescales. We combine quantitative superdiffusive transport and atomistic spin-model calculations to describe a spin-valve-type trilayer consisting of Fe$|$Cu$|$Mn${}_2$Au. Our results demonstrate that femtosecond spin-transfer torques can switch the Mn${}_2$Au layer within a few picoseconds. In addition, we find that spin waves with high frequencies up to several THz can be excited in Mn${}_2$Au.

References in corpus (23)

• Antiferromagnetic spintronics
• Antiferromagnetic spintronics
• Electrical switching of an antiferromagnet
• Super-Diffusive Spin-Transport as a Mechanism of Ultrafast Demagnetization
• Anatomy of Spin-Transfer Torque
• Relativistic Neel-order fields induced by electrical current in antiferromagnets
• Writing and Reading antiferromagnetic Mn${}_2$Au: Néel spin-orbit torques and large anisotropic magnetoresistance
• Spin transfer and current-induced switching in antiferromagnets
• Subterahertz spin pumping from an insulating antiferromagnet
• Ultrafast transport of laser-excited spin polarized carriers in Au/Fe/MgO(001)
• Electrical switching of antiferromagnetic Mn${}_2$Au and the role of thermal activation
• Nanoscale confinement of ultrafast spin transfer torque exciting non-uniform spin dynamics by femtosecond spin current pulses
• Orbitally Dominated Rashba-Edelstein Effect in Noncentrosymmetric Antiferromagnets
• Ultrafast Switching of Antiferromagnets via Spin-transfer Torque
• Femtosecond spin current pulses generated by the non-thermal spin-dependent Seebeck effect and interacting with ferromagnets in spin valves
• Robust Picosecond writing of a Layered Antiferromagnet by Staggered Spin-Orbit-Fields
• Interface reflectivity of a superdiffusive spin current in ultrafast demagnetization and THz emission
• Ultrafast antiferromagnetic switching in NiO induced by spin transfer torques
• Unveiling domain wall dynamics of ferrimagnets in thermal magnon currents: competition of angular momentum transfer and entropic torque
• Ultrafast coherent all-optical switching of an antiferromagnet with the inverse Faraday effect
• High-frequency magnon excitation due to femtosecond spin-transfer torques
• Current induced switching in Mn2Au from first principles
• Transport theory for femtosecond laser-induced spin-transfer torques

Cited by in corpus (4)

• Switching of Magnetization in Quantum Antiferromagnets with Time-Dependent Control Fields
• Exploring terahertz-scale exchange resonances in synthetic ferrimagnets with ultrashort optically induced spin currents
• Switching magnetization of quantum antiferromagnets: Schwinger boson mean-field theory compared to exact diagonalization
• Fast reversal of Néel vectors in antiferromagnets via domain-wall motion driven by vertically injected spin currents