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arXiv · 2309.09964

Coherent x-ray magnetic imaging with 5 nm resolution

Riccardo Battistelli·Daniel Metternich·Michael Schneider·Lisa-Marie Kern·Kai Litzius·Josefin Fuchs·Christopher Klose·Kathinka Gerlinger·Kai Bagschik·Christian M. Günther·Dieter Engel·Claus Ropers·Stefan Eisebitt·Bastian Pfau·Felix Büttner·Sergey Zayko
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Abstract

Soft x-ray microscopy plays an important role in modern spintronics. However, the achievable resolution of most x-ray magnetic imaging experiments is above 10 nm, limiting access to fundamental and technologically relevant length scales. Here, we demonstrate x-ray magnetic microscopy with 5 nm resolution by combining holography-assisted coherent diffractive imaging with heterodyne amplification of the weak magnetic signal. The gain in resolution and contrast allows direct access to key magnetic properties, including domain wall profiles and the position of pinning sites. The ability to detect and map such properties with photons opens new horizons for element-specific, time-resolved, and in-operando research on magnetic materials and beyond.

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Riccardo Battistelli, Daniel Metternich, Michael Schneider, Lisa-Marie Kern, Kai Litzius, Josefin Fuchs, Christopher Klose, Kathinka Gerlinger, Kai Bagschik, Christian M. Günther, Dieter Engel, Claus Ropers, Stefan Eisebitt, Bastian Pfau, Felix Büttner, Sergey Zayko. 2023-09-18. Coherent x-ray magnetic imaging with 5 nm resolution. https://arxiv.org/abs/2309.09964

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