Optically controlling the competition between spin flips and intersite spin transfer in a Heusler half-metal on sub-100-fs time scales.

ABSTRACT: The direct manipulation of spins via light may provide a path toward ultrafast energy-efficient devices. However, distinguishing the microscopic processes that can occur during ultrafast laser excitation in magnetic alloys is challenging. Here, we study the Heusler compound Co₂MnGa, a material that exhibits very strong light-induced spin transfers across the entire M-edge. By combining the element specificity of extreme ultraviolet high-harmonic probes with time-dependent density functional theory, we disentangle the competition between three ultrafast light-induced processes that occur in Co₂MnGa: same-site Co-Co spin transfer, intersite Co-Mn spin transfer, and ultrafast spin flips mediated by spin-orbit coupling. By measuring the dynamic magnetic asymmetry across t

SUBMITTER: Ryan SA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10637748 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature