Magnetic and magneto-optical properties of Co$_{2}$MnSi magnetic grating

The magnetic and the magneto-optical properties of periodic magnetic structure, produced by the femtosecond-laser induced crystallization of amorphous Co$_{2}$MnSi films, were elucidated. The amorphous Co$_{2}$MnSi films have been prepared by rf-magnetron sputtering on a glass substrate at room temperature. In order to form a grating structure, two-beam interference of femtosecond laser pulses was employed. The atomic-force-microscopy and the transmission-electron-microscopy results show regularly-spaced alternating lines with a periodicity of 2\textit{ $\mu $}m. The magnetic-force-microscopy results reveal the periodic patterns of magnetic domains. The Kerr hysteresis loops of sample were measured by using a magneto-optical microscope. The enhanced magneto-optical properties were observed in the first-order diffracted beam. It was also found that the films with a spatially periodic magnetic structure can be relatively easily fabricated by selectively crystallization of a paramagnetic Co$_{2}$MnSi amorphous film, which crystallizes into a ferromagnetic phase upon illumination with sufficiently intense laser light.