Ab initio prediction of giant magnetostriction and spin-reorientation in strained Au/FeCo/MgO heterostructure

作者：Ong P V^*; Kioussis Nicholas

来源：Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials, 2016, 400: 262-265.

DOI：10.1016/j.jmmm.2015.07.065

• Ab initio calculation
• Magnetic anisotropy
• Spin-orbit coupling
• Epitaxial strain
• Magnetostriction coefficient

Employing ab initio electronic structure calculations we have investigated the magnetostrictive properties and the effect of epitaxial strain on the magnetic anisotropy (MA) of Au/FeCo/MgO heterostructure. Under small expansive strain on the FeCo layer the system exhibits an in-plane MA. The calculations reveal that the strain dependence of the MA is nonlinear and that the FeCo film undergoes a spin re-orientation at a critical strain between 2 and 4%. The underlying mechanism is the strain-induced shift of the spin-orbit coupled d-states of the Fe atoms. We predict a giant magnetostriction coefficient of about 420 x 10(-6) in the heterostructure. Published by Elsevier B.V.

• 出版日期2016-2-15