The effect of surface anisotropy on the magnetic ground state of a ferromagnetic nanoparticle is investigated using atomic Monte Carlo simulation for spheres of radius R=6a and R=15a, where a is the interatomic spacing. It is found that the competition between surface and bulk magnetocrystalline anisotropy imposes a “throttled” spin structure where the spins of outer shells tend to orient normal to the surface while the core spins remain parallel to each other. For large values of surface anisotropy, the spins in sufficiently small particles become radially oriented either inward or outward in a “hedgehog” configuration with no net magnetization. Implications for FePt nanoparticles are discussed.

Monte Carlo simulations are used to investigate the effect of surface anisotropy on the spin configurations and hysteresis loops of ferromagnetic nanoparticles. Spherical particles of radius a are composed of N atoms located on a simple cubic lattice with interatomic spacing a. The particles have 2 ഛ ഛ 13. A classical Heisenberg model is assumed, with surface and bulk anisotropy. When surface anisotropy is positive there are two types of ground states separated by a large energy barrier: a "throttled" configuration with reduced magnetization for intermediate values of surface anisotropy and a "hedgehog" configuration with zero magnetization in the strong surface anisotropy limit. Beyond a threshold, surface anisotropy of either sign induces ͗111͘ easy axes for the net magnetization. Easy-axis hysteresis loops are then square, with a continuous approach to saturation, and the effective anisotropy is deduced either from the switching field or from the initial slope of the perpendicular magnetization curve. The hedgehog state shows a stepwise magnetization curve involving discrete configurations, and it passes to a throttled configuration before saturating. The hysteresis loop has the unusual feature that it involves a state in the first quadrant, which lies on the reversible initial magnetization curve; it is possible to recover the zero-field cooled state after saturation. A survey of the exchange and anisotropy parameters for a range of ferromagnetic materials indicates that the effects of surface anisotropy on the spin configuration should be most evident in nanoparticles of ferromagnetic actinide compounds such as US, and rare-earth metals and alloys with Curie points below room temperature; the effects in nanoparticles of 3d ferromagnets and their alloys are usually insignificant, with the possible exception of FePt.