Magnetization orientation dependence of the quasiparticle spectrum and hysteresis in ferromagnetic metal nanoparticles

We determine theoretically the effect of spin-orbit coupling on the magnetic excitation spectrum of itinerant multi-orbital systems, with specific application to iron-based superconductors. Our microscopic model includes a realistic ten-band kinetic Hamiltonian, atomic spin-orbit coupling, and multi-orbital Hubbard interactions. Our results highlight the remarkable variability of the resulting magnetic anisotropy despite constant spin-orbit coupling. At the same time, the mag...

We performed ab initio computations of the magnetic properties of simple iron oxide clusters and slabs. We considered an iron oxide cluster functionalized by a molecule or glued to a gold cluster of the same size. We also considered a magnetite slab coated by cobalt oxide or a mixture of iron oxide and cobalt oxide. The changes in magnetic behavior were explored using constrained magnetic calculations. A possible value for the surface anisotropy was estimated from the fit of ...

A new experimental procedure is discussed, which aims at separating thermal from quantum behavior independently of the energy barrier distribution in small particle systems. Magnetization relaxation data measured between 60 mK and 5 K on a sample of nanoparticles is presented. The comparison between experimental data and numerical calculations shows a clear departure from thermal dynamics for our sample, which was not obvious without using the new procedure presented here.

In a many-spin approach that takes account of the internal structure, microscopic interactions and single-site anisotropies, we investigate the effect of spin non-collinearities induced by the boundary and surface anisotropy on the behaviour of individual magnetic nanoparticles. Through analytical and numerical calculations, we show that there are mainly two regimes separated by some critical value of the surface anisotropy constant $K_s$ which controls the intensity of spi...

Most interesting phenomena of condensed matter physics originate from interactions among different degrees of freedom, making it a very intriguing yet challenging question how certain ground states emerge from only a limited number of atoms in assembly. This is especially the case for strongly correlated electron systems with overwhelming complexity. The Verwey transition of Fe3O4 is a classic example of this category, of which the origin is still elusive 80 years after the f...

In this work we present a new method to calculate the classical properties of magnetic nanoparticles. Based on the Bethe-Peierls (pair) approximation, we developed a simple system of equations for the classical magnetization of spins at any position within the nanoparticle. The nearest neightbor pair correlations are treated exactly for Ising spins, and the method can be generalized for various lattice symmetries. The master equation is solved for the Glauber dynamics (single...

We address the theory of the coupled lattice and magnetization dynamics of freely suspended single-domain nanoparticles. Magnetic anisotropy generates low-frequency satellite peaks in the microwave absorption spectrum and a blueshift of the ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) frequency. The low-frequency resonances are very sharp with maxima exceeding that of the FMR, because their magnetic and mechanical precessions are locked, thereby suppressing Gilbert damping. Magnetic nanopar...

The observation of unusually large ferromagnetism in the nanoparticles of doped oxides and enhanced ferromagnetic tendencies in manganite nanoparticles have been in focus recently. For the transition metal-doped oxide nanoparticles a phenomenological `charge transfer ferromagnetism' model is recently proposed by Coey et al. From a microscopic calculation with charge transfer between the defect band and mixed valent dopants, acting as reservoir, we show how the unusually high ...

Recent work [1] demonstrated high coercivity and magnetic moment in cobalt carbide nanoparticle assemblies and explained the high coercivity from first principles in terms of the high magnetocrystalline anisotropy of the cobalt carbide nanoparticles. In this work, we comprehensively model the interaction between the nanoparticles comprising the assembly and systematically understand the effect of particle size, distribution of the orientations of the nanoparticles' magnetocry...

The thermal activation of magnetization reversal in magnetic nanoparticles is controlled by the anisotropy-energy barrier. Using perturbation theory, exact diagonalization and stability analysis of the ferromagnetic spin-s Heisenberg model with coupling or single-site anisotropy, we study the effects of quantum fluctuations on the height of the energy barrier. Opposed to the classical case, there is no critical anisotropy strength discriminating between reversal via coherent ...