A significant influence of the substrate on the magnetic anisotropy of monatomic nanowires

TL;DR

This study investigates how the substrate, especially Pt, influences the magnetic anisotropy of Fe and Co monatomic nanowires using density-functional theory, highlighting the roles of spin-orbit interaction and hybridization.

Contribution

It demonstrates the significant impact of substrate-induced spin-orbit coupling and hybridization on magnetic anisotropy in monatomic nanowires, providing detailed theoretical insights.

Findings

Spin-orbit interaction of Pt atoms affects magnetic easy axis.

Hybridization modifies the magnetic anisotropy magnitude.

Substrate presence significantly influences magnetic properties.

Abstract

The magnetic anisotropy energy of Fe and Co monatomic nanowires both free-standing and at the step edge of a Pt surface is investigated within the framework of the density-functional theory and local-spin-density (LSDA) approximation. Various types of the analysis of the calculated data reveal that the spin-orbit interaction of the Pt atoms and the hybridization between the electronic states have an important impact on the direction of the easy axis and on the magnitude of the magnetic anisotropy, both by a direct contribution localized at the Pt atoms and by an indirect contribution due to the modification of the Co-localized part via hybridization effects.