Description:
| Aims: The aim of this unit is to explain the basic properties of magnetism, and illustrate contemporary applications of related phenomena.
Learning Outcomes: After taking this unit the student should be able to:
* demonstrate a basic understanding of the origin and types of magnetic order;
* describe and explain the origins of magnetic microstructure;
* explain the magnetisation process and hysteresis;
* describe magneto-optical effects and how magnetism impacts upon transport properties.
Skills: Numeracy T/F A, Problem Solving T/F A.
Content: Microscopic origins of magnetism. Magnetic ordering; para-, ferro-, anti-ferro and ferri- magnetism. Itinerant magnetism. The exchange interaction. Heisenberg model. Demagnetising fields and crystalline anisotropy. Domains and magnetic microstructure. M-H hysteresis curves; coercivity, soft and hard magnetic materials. Dynamic effects: magnetization reversal, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, spin resonance. Thin film magnetism. Magneto-optical phenomena; Kerr effect and applications. Magnetoelectronics and spintronics; spin valves, GMR, applications. Contemporary applications of magnetism.
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