Uncompensated magnetization and exchange-bias field in La0.7Sr0.3MnO3/YMnO3 bilayers: The influence of the ferromagnetic layer

We studied the magnetic behavior of bilayers of multiferroic and nominally antiferromagnetic o-YMnO3 (375 nm thick) and ferromagnetic La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 and La0.67Ca0.33MnO3 (8…225 nm), in particular the vertical magnetization shift ME and exchange-bias field HE for different thickness and magnetic dilutions of the ferromagnetic layer at different temperatures and cooling fields. We have found very large ME shifts equivalent to up to 100% of the saturation value of the o-YMO layer alone. The overall behavior, including XMCD magnetization shift measured at the Mn-L edge of the LSMO layer only, indicates that the properties of the ferromagnetic layer contribute substantially to the ME shift and that this does not correlate straightforwardly with the measured exchange-bias field HE.

► This work studies the magnetic behavior especially the exchange-bias magnetization shift of bilayers of multiferroic-antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic oxides.
► The magnetization as well as the magnetic circular dichroism results indicate that the ferromagnetic layer and not the antiferromagnetic layer contribute substantially to the magnetization shift.