A High Sensitivity Custom-Built Vibrating Sample Magnetometer

Abstract

This work details the construction and optimization of a fully automated, custom-built, remote controlled vibrating sample magnetometer for use in spintronics related research and teaching. Following calibration by a standard 6 mm diameter Ni disc sample with known magnetic moment, hysteresis measurements of Nd-Fe-B thin films acquired by this built vibrating sample magnetometer were compared to the data taken using a commercial superconducting quantum interference device and showed very similar results. In plane and out of plane magnetic hysteresis data acquired for 25 nm Fe thin films are also presented. The developed vibrating sample magnetometer is able to achieve a sensitivity approaching 1 × 10−5 emu. Further alterations to the design that may improve beyond this limit are also discussed.

Keywords

• instrumentation
• magnetometry
• vibrating sample magnetometer
• spintronics
• thin films
• hysteresis loop