Dispersion and spin wave tunneling in nanostructured magnetostatic spin waveguides

Magnetostatic spin wave dispersion and loss are measured in micron scale spin waveguides in ferromagnetic, metallic CoTaZr. Results are in good agreement with model calculations of spin wave dispersion. The measured attenuation lengths, of the order of 3 mu m, are several of orders of magnitude shorter than that predicted from eddy currents in these thin wires. Spin waves effectively tunnel through air gaps, produced by focused ion beam etching, as large as 1.5 mu m. (c) 2009 American Institute of Physics. [DOI: 10.1063/1.3079767]