Doubling of the magnetic energy product in ferromagnetic nanowires at ambient temperature by capping their tips with an antiferromagnet.

We present an approach to prepare free-standing tips of micrometer-long nanowires electrodeposited in anodic aluminum oxide nanopores. Such open tips can be further processed, e.g. for vertical interconnects of functional layers or for tailoring the magnetization reversal of ferromagnetic nanowires. The magnetic switching of nanowires is usually initiated by vortex or domain formation at the nanowire tips. We show that coating the tips of Fe30Co70 nanowires (diameter 40 nm, length 16 µm) with thin antiferromagnetic Fe50Mn50 capping layers (thickness ≈10 nm) leads to magnetic hardening with a more than doubled energy product at ambient temperature.

Electrostatic doping as a source for robust ferromagnetism at the interface between antiferromagnetic cobalt oxides.

Polar oxide interfaces are an important focus of research due to their novel functionality which is not available in the bulk constituents. So far, research has focused mainly on heterointerfaces derived from the perovskite structure. It is important to extend our understanding of electronic reconstruction phenomena to a broader class of materials and structure types. Here we report from high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and quantitative magnetometry a robust ­ above room temperature (Curie temperature TC ≫ 300 K) ­ environmentally stable- ferromagnetically coupled interface layer between the antiferromagnetic rocksalt CoO core and a 2-4 nm thick antiferromagnetic spinel Co3O4 surface layer in octahedron-shaped nanocrystals. Density functional theory calculations with an on-site Coulomb repulsion parameter identify the origin of the experimentally observed ferromagnetic phase as a charge transfer process (partial reduction) of Co(3+) to Co(2+) at the CoO/Co3O4 interface, with Co(2+) being in the low spin state, unlike the high spin state of its counterpart in CoO. This finding may serve as a guideline for designing new functional nanomagnets based on oxidation resistant antiferromagnetic transition metal oxides.