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Role of electron and phonon temperatures in the helicity-independent all-optical switching of GdFeCo

J. Gorchon, R. B. Wilson, Y. Yang, A. Pattabi, J. Y. Chen, L. He, J. P. Wang, M. Li, and J. Bokor
Phys. Rev. B 94, 184406 – Published 4 November 2016
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Abstract

Ultrafast optical heating of the electrons in ferrimagnetic metals can result in all-optical switching (AOS) of the magnetization. Here we report quantitative measurements of the temperature rise of GdFeCo thin films during helicity-independent AOS. Critical switching fluences are obtained as a function of the initial temperature of the sample and for laser pulse durations from 55 fs to 15 ps. We conclude that nonequilibrium phenomena are necessary for helicity-independent AOS, although the peak electron temperature does not play a critical role. Pump-probe time-resolved experiments show that the switching time increases as the pulse duration increases, with 10 ps pulses resulting in switching times of 13 ps. These results raise new questions about the fundamental mechanism of helicity-independent AOS.

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  • Received 2 June 2016
  • Revised 5 September 2016

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.94.184406

©2016 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Condensed Matter, Materials & Applied Physics

Authors & Affiliations

J. Gorchon1,2,*, R. B. Wilson1,2,3,†, Y. Yang4, A. Pattabi2, J. Y. Chen5, L. He5, J. P. Wang5, M. Li5, and J. Bokor1,2

  • 1Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
  • 2Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
  • 3Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science & Engineering Program, University of California, Riverside, California 92521, USA
  • 4Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
  • 5Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455, USA

  • *jgorchon@lbl.gov
  • rwilson@engr.ucr.edu

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Issue

Vol. 94, Iss. 18 — 1 November 2016

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