The in-plane Fe spin spiral structure for Fe/Sm-Co(1100) exchange-spring magnetic bilayers was investigated by 57 Fe conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy during the magnetization reversal process, and correlated with hysteresis loops measured via the longitudinal magneto-optic Kerr effect. A direct experimental proof for a relaxed spiral angular spin distribution in the Fe layer is presented. Under negative applied fields the interfacial Fe spins rotate by up to 40°with respect to the easy axis of the Sm-Co hard-magnet layer.
Theoretical and experimental issues connected with exchange-bias and exchange-spring behavior are briefly reviewed, and the potential of conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy (CEMS), including the 57 Fe probe layer technique, to reveal the spin structure in layered systems is emphasized. First experimental results are reported for the new exchange-bias system FeSn 2 /Fe and for the exchange-spring system Sm-Co/Fe.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.