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DOE OSTI · 2941416

Ultrafast low-temperature metal–insulator interface phonon dynamics and heat transport in a Pt/Gd 3 Fe 5 O 12 heterostructure

Sri Gyan, Deepankar [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000316722617)·Li, Ni [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000272811828)·Chen, Zhantao [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science (SIMES); SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)] (ORCID:0000000319543868)·Geprägs, Stephan [Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Garching (Germany)] (ORCID:0000000309852341)·Dietlein, Maxim [Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Garching (Germany); Technical Univ. of Munich (Germany)] (ORCID:0009000986990714)·Gross, Rudolf [Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Garching (Germany); Technical Univ. of Munich (Germany); Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology (MCQST), Munich (Germany)] (ORCID:0000000345247552)·Sato, Takahiro [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)] (ORCID:0000000322020910)·Sun, Yanwen [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)] (ORCID:0000000159266565)·Hoffmann, Matthias C. [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)] (ORCID:0000000235969853)·Zhu, Diling [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)] (ORCID:0009000149419799)·Haskel, Daniel [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Advanced Photon Source (APS)] (ORCID:0000000255325908)·Strempfer, Jörg [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Advanced Photon Source (APS)] (ORCID:0000000264430283)·Li, Mingda [Massachusetts Inst. of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000270556368)·Mannix, Danny [Univ. of Grenoble Alpes, Grenoble (France); European Spallation Source (ESS), Lund (Sweden)] (ORCID:0009000435728488)·Evans, Paul G. [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000304216792)
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Abstract

Interfacial thermal and acoustic phenomena have an important role in quantum science and technology, including in spintronic and spincaloritronic materials and devices. Simultaneous measurements of the low-temperature thermal and acoustic properties of a metal/insulator heterostructure reveal distinct dynamics in the characteristic phonon frequency ranges of acoustic and thermal transport. The measurements probed a heterostructure consisting of a thin film of Pt on the ferrimagnetic insulator gadolinium iron garnet (Gd 3 Fe 5 O 12 , GdIG) grown epitaxially on a gadolinium gallium garnet substrate. Ultrafast structural dynamics within the Pt layer were tracked using time-resolved ultrafast x-ray diffraction and analyzed to probe interfacial acoustic and thermal properties. The rapid heating of the Pt layer by a 400 nm wavelength femtosecond-duration optical pulse produced transient structural changes that provided the stimulus for these measurements. Rapid heating produced a broadband acoustic pulse that was partially reflected by the Pt/GdIG interface. Temporal frequencies up to 740 GHz, corresponding to angular frequencies of several THz, were detected in a wavelet analysis of the acoustic oscillations of the strain in the Pt layer. The structural results were analyzed to determine (i) the acoustic damping coefficient and phonon mean free path in Pt at frequencies of hundreds of GHz and (ii) the Grüneisen anharmonicity parameter. The thermal conductance of the Pt/GdIG interface was tracked using the slower, tens-of-picosecond-scale, dynamics of the initial cooling of the heated Pt layer. Analysis using a model based on the Boltzmann transport equation shows that the phonon transmission is lower at the phonon frequencies relevant to thermal transport than for subterahertz regime acoustics.

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Acoustic phenomenaAcoustical propertiesHeat transferHeterostructuresMaterials propertiesPhononsPicosecond ultrasonicsThermal transportThin filmsX-ray diffraction

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Sri Gyan, Deepankar [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000316722617), Li, Ni [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000272811828), Chen, Zhantao [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science (SIMES); SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)] (ORCID:0000000319543868), Geprägs, Stephan [Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Garching (Germany)] (ORCID:0000000309852341), Dietlein, Maxim [Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Garching (Germany); Technical Univ. of Munich (Germany)] (ORCID:0009000986990714), Gross, Rudolf [Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Garching (Germany); Technical Univ. of Munich (Germany); Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology (MCQST), Munich (Germany)] (ORCID:0000000345247552), Sato, Takahiro [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)] (ORCID:0000000322020910), Sun, Yanwen [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)] (ORCID:0000000159266565), Hoffmann, Matthias C. [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)] (ORCID:0000000235969853), Zhu, Diling [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)] (ORCID:0009000149419799), Haskel, Daniel [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Advanced Photon Source (APS)] (ORCID:0000000255325908), Strempfer, Jörg [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Advanced Photon Source (APS)] (ORCID:0000000264430283), Li, Mingda [Massachusetts Inst. of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA (United States)] (ORCID:0000000270556368), Mannix, Danny [Univ. of Grenoble Alpes, Grenoble (France); European Spallation Source (ESS), Lund (Sweden)] (ORCID:0009000435728488), Evans, Paul G. [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)] (ORCID:0000000304216792). 2025-11-24. Ultrafast low-temperature metal–insulator interface phonon dynamics and heat transport in a Pt/Gd 3 Fe 5 O 12 heterostructure. https://doi.org/10.1063/4.0000778

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Acoustic phenomena subjectAcoustical properties subjectHEAT TRANSFER subjectHeterostructures subjectMaterials properties subjectPhonons subjectPicosecond ultrasonics subject

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