Yu Shiratsuchi

The outstanding features associated with Zn and Be diffusion in GaAs substrates and GaAs/AlGaAs superlattices are explained either quantitatively or semiquantitatively using the kick-out mechanism, in which it is assumed that the doubly positively charged Ga self-interstitial governs Ga self-diffusion. These features include (i) the dependence of the Zn solubility upon the pressures of the As and Zn vapor phases, (ii) the square power-law dependence of the Zn diffusivity on its own background co

By using the perpendicular-exchange-biased Pt/Co/α-Cr(2)O(3) system, we provide experimental evidence that the unreversed uncompensated Cr spins exist at the Co/α-Cr(2)O(3) interface. The unreversed uncompensated Cr spin manifests itself in both the vertical shift of an element-specific magnetization curve and the relative peak intensity of soft-x-ray magnetic circular dichroism spectrum. We also demonstrate an in situ switching of the interfacial Cr spins and correspondingly a reversal of the e

Perpendicular exchange bias was investigated using Pt/Co/α-Cr2O3(0001) thin films prepared by a reactive DC magnetron sputtering method. On the α-Cr2O3(0001) layer, the Pt/Co thin film simultaneously showed perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) and perpendicular exchange bias (PEB). Although PEB was not observed at room temperature, it suddenly appeared, accompanied by a unique temperature dependence. The suddenly appearing PEB was as large as a unidirectional magnetic anisotropy energy, JK, o

We studied the surface structure of self-organized sapphire (0001) substrates with various inclined angles, using an atomic force microscope (AFM) in UHV. The self-organized surface structure strongly depended on annealing condition, inclined angle and inclined direction. We could successfully produce a highly self-organized step structure by choosing suitable values of these parameters. The surface of the self-organized inclined substrates was characterized by step and terraces. The morphology

The diffusion of the substitutional Cr atoms (Crs) in GaAs results from the rapid migration of the interstitial atoms (Cri) and their subsequent changeover to occupy Ga sites (or vise versa), a typical substitutional-interstitial-diffusion (SID) process. There are two possible ways for the Cri-Crs changeover to occur: the kick-out mechanism in which Ga self-interstitials are involved, and the dissociative mechanism in which Ga vacancies are involved. The Crs in-diffusion profiles are of characte

This study investigates the influence of Pt and Au spacer layers on the perpendicular exchange bias field and coercivity of Pt/Co/(Pt or Au)/Cr2O3/Pt films. When using a Pt-spacer, the perpendicular exchange bias was highly degraded to less than 0.1 erg/cm2, which was about half that of the Au-spacer system. The Au spacer also suppressed the enhancement in coercivity that usually occurs at around room temperature when using Pt. It is suggested that this difference in exchange bias field is due t

We investigated the control of the perpendicular exchange bias (PEB) in Pt/Co/α-Cr <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> O <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> (0001) thin films that exhibit a unique temperature dependence of the PEB. Previously, we demonstrated that the onset of the PEB is explained by the competition between the interface coupling energy and the ma

Magnetoelectric (ME) effect is a type of cross-coupling between unconjugated physical quantities, such as the interplay between magnetization and electric field. The ME effect requires simultaneous breaking of spatial and time inversion symmetries, and it sometimes appears in specific antiferromagnetic (AFM) insulators. In recent years, there has been a growing interest for applying the ME effect to spintronic devices, where the effect is utilized as an input method for the digital information.

Antiferromagnets themselves do not generate either stray fields or spontaneous magnetization. However, if an antiferromagnet is coupled with a ferromagnet, unique and useful characteristics appear. Exchange bias is one such characteristic that is utilized in spintronic devices like spin-valve films. To date, exchange bias has been used to induce static effects in devices; however, the exchange bias has not been switchable in these devices. Recently, switchable exchange bias has been developed us

We have studied superparamagnetic behavior of ultrathin Fe films grown on an Al2O3(0001) substrate at various growth temperatures. It is demonstrated that 1-nm-thick Fe films are in the superparamagnetic state, and the blocking temperature is strongly dependent on the growth temperature. The blocking temperature has a minimum value of 30 K for a growth temperature of 473 K, while it is ∼70 K at other growth temperatures. In order to clarify the behavior, we consider the Fe growth mechanism and t

We have investigated the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) at the ferromagnetic/antiferromagnetic interface using [Pt/Co]n/α-Cr2O3 superlattices. By changing the number of stacking periods, the contributions of the Co/α-Cr2O3 and Pt/Co interfaces to the PMA are separately estimated. The results indicate that the strong PMA is induced at the Co/α-Cr2O3 interface as well as at the Pt/Co interface. The change in the interface magnetic anisotropy energy density with the ferromagnetic layer com

The magnetic coupling at the interface of Co and Cr has been investigated using ultrathin Co film on Cr2O3(0001) film, which is expected to be a promising system to show the magnetoelectronic effect. We mainly examined the temperature dependence of magnetization, the exchange bias at different field directions relative to the Cr spin direction, and the temperature dependence of exchange bias. The temperature dependence of magnetization under 50 Oe indicates the collinear coupling of Co spin and

By using focused soft X-rays, magnetic domain imaging based on X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) measurements was performed on a Pt/Co/Cr₂O₃/Pt film that exhibits both perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and perpendicular exchange anisotropy. In the AC-demagnetized state, spatial distributions of the XMCD corresponding to the magnetic domains were clearly observed. In particular, ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic magnetic domains were separately observed by tuning th

We investigated the switching process of the perpendicular exchange bias, which is driven by the magnetoelectric effect, by conducting magnetic domain observations using scanning soft X-ray magnetic circular dichroism microscopy. Isothermal and simultaneous application of magnetic and electric fields switches the perpendicular exchange bias polarity. The switching process proceeds by the nucleation and growth of reversed domains. The correspondence among the ferromagnetic/antiferromagnetic domai