Subnanosecond microwave-assisted magnetization switching in a circularly polarized microwave magnetic field

We study microwave-assisted magnetization switching (MAS) of a perpendicularly magnetized nanomagnet with a diameter of 50 nm in a circularly polarized microwave magnetic field. The MAS effect appears when the rotation direction of the microwave field matches that of the ferromagnetic resonance excitation, and a large switching field decrease from 7.1 kOe to 1.5 kOe is demonstrated. In comparison with a linearly polarized microwave magnetic field, the circularly polarized microwave field induces the same MAS effect at half the microwave field amplitude, thereby showing its efficiency. We also examine MAS in the subnanosecond region and show that the magnetization switching can be induced by a microwave field with the duration of 0.2 ns. Published by AIP Publishing.