Methodology
In order to understand ultrafast processes in the correlated materials several novel experimental approaches allowing time-resolved measurements with subpicosecond resolution are applied. The department benefits from the High Field Magnet Laboratory (HFML) and the Free-Electron Lasers for Infrared eXperiments (FELIX).
Femtosecond Single Shot Imaging
This video explains the principle of magneto-optical imaging of ultrafast laser-induced magnetization dynamics.
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“From the beginning of ultrafast magnetism, the ability to visualize magnetic dynamics in the laser excited area with femtosecond temporal resolution has been believed to be crucial for understanding the physics of the photo-induced processes.”- Dmytro Afanasiev, PhD-thesis “Large-amplitude spin dynamics induced by femtosecond laser excitation in iron oxides” (Nijmegen, 2015). |
Time Domain THz-spectroscopy
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”Similar to nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, we can excite spin dynamics of electrons with a laser and measure the resulting emission. As the laser induced dynamics are typically subpicoseconds, we get emission of radiation at THz frequencies” – Thomas Huisman, PhD-thesis “Femtosecond spectroscopy for THz spintronics” (Nijmegen, 2016). |
Time-resolved measurements in High Magnetic Fields up to 37.5 Tesla
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“High magnetic fields in ultrafast magnetism research have the potential to significantly broaden the parameter space and provide a tool to manipulate magnetism on a scale close to the exchange interaction.”- Jonas Becker, PhD-thesis “Ultrafast Laser Induced Magnetization Dynamics in High Magnetic Fields” (Nijmegen, 2016). |
Sub-10 fs laser pulses
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“…we employ sub 20-fs laser pulses to excite the ultimately fast coherent spin dynamics…” – Davide Bossini, PhD-thesis “Femtosecond Optical Excitation of Spins in Antiferromagnetic fluorides: an opto-magnetic journey from the center to the edges of the Brillouin zone” (Nijmegen, 2015). |