This project explored how magnetic interactions can be tuned in engineered materials ranging from ordered multilayers to amorphous alloys. By studying systems with one-, two-, and three-dimensional magnetic modulations, the research provided new insights into the coupling mechanisms that govern their magnetic behavior.
In Fe/MgO multilayers, interlayer exchange coupling through spin-polarized tunneling was used to achieve and control antiferromagnetic ordering, with coupling strength varying as a function of layer number and temperature. In two-dimensional metamaterials, arrays of magnetic “mesospins” demonstrated transitions between static and dynamic magnetic states, where lattice geometry and element size dictated the emergent magnetic textures. Finally, in amorphous CoAlZr and FeZr alloys, structural disorder and composition fluctuations were found to produce competing magnetic anisotropies, as revealed through off-specular scattering and low-temperature measurements.
Together, these studies deepened the understanding of magnetic coupling, emergent order, and structural effects in complex materials, paving the way for tailored magnetic metamaterials and disordered systems with tunable properties for future spintronic and energy applications.