We demonstrate the fabrication of metallic nano-contacts on magnetic multilayers using a Hole Mask Colloidal Lithography technique (HCL) based on Polystyrene spheres. The method applies PMMA as a sacrificial layer upon which a hole pattern is formed after liftoff of the spheres. An Au layer functions as a hard mask for the PMMA and the PMMA subsequently masks the SiO(2) during its etching. The resulting pattern is a dense collection of randomly located nano-holes through a SiO(2) film. Final devices are made using traditional photolithography to define a 600 nm circular mesa with about 3 to 4 nano-holes per device, and patterning of a metallic top contact.

We demonstrate spin transfer torque (STT) switching in multi-nanocontact STT devices fabricated using hole mask colloidal lithography. We also study the STT device resistance and switching properties as a function of applied magnetic field and nanocontact current. At low nanocontact current, magnetoresistance measurements show sharp, single-step switching at low switching fields. When the current is increased, the switching becomes multistep, and the switching field increases dramatically. We explain these results as arising from a transition from a predominantly single domain like switching to switching involving a vortex state. Micromagnetic simulations corroborate this picture, indicating that a single magnetic vortex nucleates in between the nanocontacts through the influence from the total Oersted field generated by the nanocontact ensemble.

We demonstrate a nano-contact based spin-torque oscillator (STO) combining a high operating frequency with low field operation. The STO is based on an orthogonal spin-valve architecture with an in-plane Co polarizer and an out-of-plane Co/Ni multilayer free layer. High frequency operation at low external fields is achieved by tailoring the Co/Ni layer properties to increase the strength (H(k)) of the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, while simultaneously reducing the saturation magnetization (M(s)). Our approach emphasizes the importance of mu(0)(H(k)-M(s)) in determining the operating frequency in this system, and suggests that yet higher frequencies should be attainable through further optimization. [GRAPHICS]

Dissipative solitons have been reported in a wide range of nonlinear systems, but the observation of their magnetic analog has been experimentally challenging. Using spin transfer torque underneath a nanocontact on a magnetic thin film with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA), we have observed the generation of dissipative magnetic droplet solitons and report on their rich dynamical properties. Micromagnetic simulations identify a wide range of automodulation frequencies, including droplet oscillatory motion, droplet "spinning," and droplet "breather" states. The droplet can be controlled by using both current and magnetic fields and is expected to have applications in spintronics, magnonics, and PMA-based domain-wall devices.

We demonstrate spin transfer torque (STT) driven microwave signal generation, from about 250 MHz to above 3 GHz, in single perm alloy layers underneath a nano-contact with diameter of 100 nm. The threshold current for signal generation is found to be strongly hysteretic, the microwave signal shows a number of harmonics, zero-field operation is straightforward, and the microwave frequency increases quasi-linearly with drive current. All observations are consistent with STT driven motion of a vortex-antivortex pair nucleated by the Oersted field underneath the nano-contact. While the generated power is about 10 dB smaller than the best GMR based nano-contact spin torque oscillators, the linewidth of 6-100 MHz is of the same order.

Spin-torque oscillators offer a unique combination of nanosize, ultrafast modulation rates and ultrawide band signal generation from 100 MHz to close to 100 GHz. However, their low output power and large phase noise still limit their applicability to fundamental studies of spin-transfer torque and magnetodynamic phenomena. A possible solution to both problems is the spin-wave-mediated mutual synchronization of multiple spin-torque oscillators through a shared excited ferromagnetic layer. To date, synchronization of high-frequency spin-torque oscillators has only been achieved for two nanocontacts. As fabrication using expensive top-down lithography processes is not readily available to many groups, attempts to synchronize a large number of nanocontacts have been all but abandoned. Here we present an alternative, simple and cost-effective bottom-up method to realize large ensembles of synchronized nanocontact spin-torque oscillators. We demonstrate mutual synchronization of three high-frequency nanocontact spin-torque oscillators and pairwise synchronization in devices with four and five nanocontacts.