arXiv subjects

Liyang Liao

Publications and source records attributed to Liyang Liao.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Nonreciprocity reversal of magnetoacoustic attenuation in NiFe alloy thin films

Nonreciprocity, the asymmetry of transport, underlies technologies from the diode to the microwave isolator. In a ferromagnet, a surface acoustic wave generates an elliptical effective field with propagation-locked handedness, breaking the reciprocity of its propagation. Despite decades of study on this phenomenon, a method for controlling the sign of the nonreciprocity has remained elusive. Here we observe a sign reversal in Ni$_x$Fe$_{100-x}$ films. A 0.8 at.% change across Permalloy's zero-magnetostriction composition, where the magnetoelastic coefficient $b$ changes sign, reverses the handedness of the elliptical effective field and thereby the nonreciprocity, from 78.6% to -61.8%. Angle-dependent measurements and spin-wave-ellipticity modelling show that reversing the sign of $b$ reverses the handedness of the elliptically polarized effective field. Aided by cubic frequency scaling, we resolve the sign of $b$ down to -0.05 MPa in a 10-nm film, establishing nonreciprocity as a nanoscale probe of magnetoelastic coupling.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Harmonic and Subharmonic Magnon Generation in a Surface Acoustic Wave Resonator

We experimentally observe the generation of magnon harmonics and subharmonics in an on-chip surface acoustic wave resonator incorporating a thin Co$_{20}$Fe$_{60}$B$_{20}$ film, using micro-focused Brillouin light scattering. In our devices, rotating the in-plane magnetic field allows continuous tuning of the magnon-phonon coupling from weak to strong within the same resonator. In the weak coupling regime, we only observe fundamental magnetoelastic wave signal at $f_{1}$. Conversely, in the strong coupling regime, in addition to the fundamental magnetoelastic wave, we observe subharmonic and harmonic signals at $3/2f_{1}$, $2f_{1}$, and $3f_{1}$, which are well reproduced by our analytical model. Our results establish phonons as a means to generate and control nonlinear magnons in the strong coupling regime, providing a new route for magnonic signal processing.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Nonreciprocally Boosting Magnetoacoustic Coupling with Surface-Acoustic-Wave-induced Spin Transfer Torque

Strengthening magnetoacoustic coupling is crucial to the improvement of the surface acoustic wave (SAW)-driven spintronics devices. A key challenge in enhancing magnetoacoustic coupling is minimizing the phonon and magnon dissipation of the device, which usually requires complicated techniques for generating shear-horizontal (SH) or standing waves to suppress the phonon dissipation. In this work, we significantly strengthened the magnetoacoustic coupling by suppressing the magnon dissipation via the SAW-induced spin-transfer-torque (STT) in Co/Cu/NiFe multilayer, which is facilitated by the non-parallel magnetization alignment between the two ferromagnetic layers. Also, this STT exhibits the form of Zhang-Li torque due to the SAW-induced spin wave, which gives rise to the unique nonreciprocal SAW transportation under external magnetic field. This finding opens new avenues for non-reciprocally boosting magnetoacoustic coupling, which pays the way for developing on-chip SAW-driven multifunctional devices.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2025

Nonlocal Electrical Detection of Reciprocal Orbital Edelstein Effect

Spin-Orbitronics leverages the spin and orbital degrees of freedom in solids for information processing. The orbital Edelstein effect and orbital Hall effect, where the charge current induces a nonequilibrium orbital angular momentum, offer a promising method to manipulate nanomagnets efficiently using light elements. Despite extensive research, understanding the Onsager reciprocity of orbital transport, fundamentally rooted in the second law of thermodynamics and time-reversal symmetry, remains elusive. In this study, we experimentally demonstrate the Onsager reciprocity of orbital transport in an orbital Edelstein system by utilizing nonlocal measurements. This method enables the precise identification of the chemical potential generated by orbital accumulation, avoiding the limitations associated with local measurements. Remarkably, we observe that the direct and inverse orbital-charge conversion processes produce identical electric voltages, confirming Onsager reciprocity in orbital transport. Additionally, we find that the orbital decay length, approximately 100 nm at room temperature, is independent of Cu thickness and decreases with lowering temperature, revealing a distinct contrast to spin transport behavior. Our findings provide valuable insights into both the reciprocity of the charge-orbital interconversion and the nonlocal correlation of orbital degree of freedom, laying the ground for orbitronics devices with long-range interconnections.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Electrical detection in two-terminal perpendicularly magnetized devices via geometric anomalous Nernst effect

The non-uniform current distribution arisen from either current crowding effect or hot spot effect provides a method to tailor the interaction between thermal gradient and electron transport in magnetically ordered systems. Here we apply the device structural engineering to realize an in-plane inhomogeneous temperature distribution within the conduction channel, and the resulting geometric anomalous Nernst effect (GANE) gives rise to a non-zero 2nd -harmonic resistance whose polarity corresponds to the out-of-plane magnetization of Co/Pt multi-layer thin film, and its amplitude is linearly proportional to the applied current. By optimizing the aspect ratio of convex-shaped device, the effective temperature gradient can reach up to 0.3 K/$μ$m along the y-direction, leading to a GANE signal of 28.3 $μ$V. Moreover, we demonstrate electrical write and read operations in the perpendicularly-magnetized Co/Pt-based spin-orbit torque device with a simple two-terminal structure. Our results unveil a new pathway to utilize thermoelectric effects for constructing high-density magnetic memories

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2023

Interplay between moment-dependent and field-driven unidirectional magnetoresistance in CoFeB/InSb/CdTe heterostructures

Magnetoresistance effects are crucial for understanding the charge/spin transport as well as propelling the advancement of spintronic applications. Here we report the coexistence of magnetic moment-dependent (MD) and magnetic field-driven (FD) unidirectional magnetoresistance (UMR) effects in CoFeB/InSb/CdTe heterostructures. The strong spin-orbital coupling of InSb and the matched impedance at the CoFeB/InSb interface warrant a distinct MD-UMR effect at room temperature, while the interaction between the in-plane magnetic field and the Rashba effect at the InSb/CdTe interface induces the marked FD-UMR signal that dominates the high-field region. Moreover, owning to the different spin transport mechanisms, these two types of nonreciprocal charge transport show opposite polarities with respect to the magnetic field direction, which further enable an effective phase modulation of the angular-dependent magnetoresistance. Besides, the demonstrations of both the tunable UMR response and two-terminal spin-orbit torque-driven magnetization switching validate our CoFeB/InSb/CdTe system as a suitable integrated building block for multifunctional spintronic device design.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2023

Antiferromagnetic magnonic charge current generation via ultrafast optical excitation

Néel spin-orbit torque allows a charge current pulse to efficiently manipulate the Néel vector in antiferromagnets, which offers a unique opportunity for ultrahigh density information storage with high speed. However, the reciprocal process of Néel spin-orbit torque, the generation of ultrafast charge current in antiferromagnets has not been demonstrated. Here, we report the experimental observation of charge current generation in antiferromagnetic metallic Mn2Au thin films using ultrafast optical excitation. The ultrafast laser pulse excites antiferromagnetic magnons, resulting in instantaneous non-equilibrium spin polarization at the antiferromagnetic spin sublattices with broken spatial symmetry. Then the charge current is generated directly via spin-orbit fields at the two sublattices, which is termed as the reciprocal phenomenon of Néel spin-orbit torque, and the associated THz emission can be detected at room temperature. Besides the fundamental significance on the Onsager reciprocity, the observed magnonic charge current generation in antiferromagnet would advance the development of antiferromagnetic THz emitter.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2023

Strongly Coupled Spin Waves and Surface Acoustic Waves at Room Temperature

Here, we report the observation of strong coupling between magnons and surface acoustic wave (SAW) phonons in a thin CoFeB film constructed in an on-chip SAW resonator by analyzing SAW phonon dispersion anticrossings. Our device design provides the tunability of the film thickness with a fixed phonon wavelength, which is a departure from the conventional approach in strong magnon--phonon coupling research. We detect a monotonic increase in the coupling strength by expanding the film thickness, which agrees with our theoretical model. Our work offers a significant way to advance fundamental research and the development of devices based on magnon--phonon hybrid quasiparticles.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2023

Valley-Selective Phonon-Magnon Scattering in Magnetoelastic Superlattices

Phonons and magnons are engineered by periodic potential landscapes in phononic and magnonic crystals, and their combined studies may enable valley phonon transport tunable by the magnetic field. Through nonreciprocal surface acoustic wave transmission, we demonstrate valley-selective phonon-magnon scattering in magnetoelastic superlattices. The lattice symmetry and the out-of-plane magnetization component control the sign of nonreciprocity. The phonons in the valleys play a crucial role in generating nonreciprocal transmission by inducing circularly polarized strains that couple with the magnons. The transmission spectra show a nonreciprocity peak near a transmission gap, matching the phononic band structure. Our results open the way for manipulating valley phonon transport through periodically varying magnon-phonon coupling.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2022

Wafer-scale epitaxial growth of the thickness-controllable van der Waals ferromagnet CrTe2 for reliable magnetic memory applications

To harness the intriguing properties of two-dimensional van der Waals (vdW) ferromagnets (FMs) for versatile applications, the key challenge lies in the reliable material synthesis for scalable device production. Here, we demonstrate the epitaxial growth of single-crystalline 1T-CrTe2 thin films on 2-inch sapphire substrates. Benefiting from the uniform surface energy of the dangling bond-free Al2O3(0001) surface, the layer-by-layer vdW growth mode is observed right from the initial growth stage, which warrants precise control of the sample thickness and atomically smooth surface morphology across the entire wafer. Moreover, the presence of the Coulomb interaction at the CrTe2/Al2O3 interface serves as an effective tuning parameter to tailor the anomalous Hall response, and the structural optimization of the CrTe2-based spin-orbit torque device leads to a substantial switching power reduction by 54%. Our results may lay out a general framework for the design of energy-efficient spintronics based on configurable vdW FMs.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2021

Magnon-mediated interlayer coupling in an all-antiferromagnetic junction

The interlayer coupling mediated by fermions in ferromagnets brings about parallel and anti-parallel magnetization orientations of two magnetic layers, resulting in the giant magnetoresistance, which forms the foundation in spintronics and accelerates the development of information technology. However, the interlayer coupling mediated by another kind of quasi-particle, boson, is still lacking. Here we demonstrate such a static interlayer coupling at room temperature in an antiferromagnetic junction Fe2O3/Cr2O3/Fe2O3, where the two antiferromagnetic Fe2O3 layers are functional materials and the antiferromagnetic Cr2O3 layer serves as a spacer. The Néel vectors in the top and bottom Fe2O3 are strongly orthogonally coupled, which is bridged by a typical bosonic excitation (magnon) in the Cr2O3 spacer. Such an orthogonally coupling exceeds the category of traditional collinear interlayer coupling via fermions in ground state, reflecting the fluctuating nature of the magnons, as supported by our magnon quantum well model. Besides the fundamental significance on the quasi-particle-mediated interaction, the strong coupling in an antiferromagnetic magnon junction makes it a realistic candidate for practical antiferromagnetic spintronics and magnonics with ultrahigh-density integration.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2019

Tailoring Hybrid Anomalous Hall Response in Engineered Magnetic Topological Insulator Heterostructures

Engineering the anomalous Hall effect (AHE) in the emerging magnetic topological insulators (MTIs) has great potentials for quantum information processing and spintronics applications. In this letter, we synthesize the epitaxial Bi2Te3/MnTe magnetic heterostructures and observe pronounced AHE signals from both layers combined together. The evolution of the resulting hybrid AHE intensity with the top Bi2Te3 layer thickness manifests the presence of an intrinsic ferromagnetic phase induced by the topological surface states at the heterolayer-interface. More importantly, by doping the Bi2Te3 layer with Sb, we are able to manipulate the sign of the Berry phase-associated AHE component. Our results demonstrate the un-paralleled advantages of MTI heterostructures over magnetically doped TI counterparts, in which the tunability of the AHE response can be greatly enhanced. This in turn unveils a new avenue for MTI heterostructure-based multifunctional applications.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗