Patterning Magnonic Structures via Laser Induced Crystallization of Yittrium Iron Garnet

The fabrication and integration of high-quality structures of Yttrium Iron Garnet (YIG) is critical for magnonics. Films with excellent properties are obtained only on single crystal Gadolinium Gallium Garnet (GGG) substrates using high-temperature processes. The subsequent realization of magnonic structures via lithography and etching is not straightforward as it requires a tight control of the edge roughness, to avoid magnon scattering, and planarization in case of multilayer devices. In this work a different approach is described based on local laser annealing of amorphous YIG films, avoiding the need for subjecting the entire sample to high thermal budgets and for physical etching. Starting from amorphous and paramagnetic YIG films grown by pulsed laser deposition at room temperature on GGG, a 405 nm laser is used for patterning arbitrary shaped ferrimagnetic structures by local crystallization. In thick films (160 nm) the laser induced surface corrugation prevents the propagation of spin-wave modes in patterned conduits. For thinner films (80 nm) coherent propagation is observed in 1.2 mu m wide conduits displaying an attenuation length of 5 mu m that is compatible with a damping coefficient of approximate to 5 x 10-3. Possible routes to achieve damping coefficients compatible with state-of-the art epitaxial YIG films are discussed.Arbitrary shaped magnonic structures can be patterned in amorphous thin films of Yttrium Iron Garnet (YIG) by laser induced local crystallization, with no need for etching and without exposing the entire sample to a high thermal budget. Spin wave attenuation distances of approximate to 5 mu m are measured in patterned conduits, compatible with a damping coefficient of 5.8 +/- 0.4 x 10-3. image