Inhomogeneous magnetic properties characterized by simultaneous electrical and optical detection of spin-torque ferromagnetic resonance

Abstract

Magnetic properties of the Pt/Py microstrip were investigated using the simultaneous electrical and optical detection of spin-torque ferromagnetic resonance. From the measured optical signal using the heterodyne-magneto-optical Kerr effect (MOKE), we found that the inhomogeneous broadening and Gilbert damping constant were modified along the transverse direction of the microstrip. In addition, a difference in the precession phase was also observed owing to the non-uniform out-of-plane microwave field. Our study shows that the ferromagnetic resonance measurement based on the heterodyne-MOKE technique is a powerful tool for characterizing the static and dynamic magnetic properties of magnetic thin films with sub-micrometer spatial resolution.