Hydrostatic-pressure-induced changes of magnetic anisotropy in (Ga, Mn)As thin films.

The impact of hydrostatic pressure on magnetic anisotropy energies in (Ga, Mn)As thin films with in-plane and out-of-plane magnetic easy axes predefined by epitaxial strain was investigated. In both types of sample we observed a clear increase in both in-plane and out-of-plane anisotropy parameters with pressure. The out-of-plane anisotropy constant is well reproduced by the mean-field p-d Zener model; however, the changes in uniaxial anisotropy are much larger than expected in the Mn-Mn dimer scenario.