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Applied Physics A Materials Science & Processing
ISSN: 0947-8396 (printed version)
ISSN: 1432-0630 (electronic version)
Abstract Volume 74 [Suppl1] (2002) pp s1566-s1569
DOI 10.1007/s003390201810
Deuterium-induced magnetic decoupling in a Ho(00.1)/Y superlattice
V. Leiner (1)(2) (*), D. Labergerie (1), M. Ay (1), H. Zabel (1)
(1) Institut für Experimentalphysik/Festkörperphysik, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44780 Bochum, Germany
(2) Institut Laue-Langevin, B.P. 156, 38042 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
Received: 17 July 2001 / Accepted: 11 December 2001
Abstract. Ho/Y superlattices have been studied extensively in the past concerning their phase transition and the propagation of the magnetic spiral through the Y spacer layer. Hydrogen in rare-earth metals is known to alter the electronic and magnetic properties. By means of neutron scattering, we have investigated the change of the magnetic spiral and phase transition of a [77 Å Ho(00.1)/52 Å Y]30 superlattice upon deuteration. Neutron reflectivity confirms that deuterium preferentially occupies the Y spacer layers, maintaining the structural coherence of the superlattice. Low-temperature reciprocal space maps of the pristine Ho/Y superlattice exhibit a magnetic satellite peak <tau>, convoluted with the satellite peaks of the chemical period, indicative for exchange coupling between the Ho layers mediated by the Y spacers. After deuterium uptake the splitting of the <tau> peak vanishes. The spiral becomes confined to the individual Ho blocks, similar to single thin Ho films. The ordering temperature, TN, is found to be \approx118 K and constant under deuterium loading. Thus coupling-decoupling the Ho blocks does not affect the ordering temperature, whereas it depends on the individual Ho layer thickness via scaling.
PACS: 75.70.Cn; 61.12.-q; 68.55. Ln
(*) Corresponding author. (Fax: +49-2343/214-173, E-mail: leiner@ill.fr)
Article in PDF format (128 KB)
Online publication: January 14, 2003
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