FORC measurements in PPMS systems

FORC is the abbreviation for First-Order-Reversal-Curve. It describes a measurement routine which enables the determination of both reversible and irreversible components of the magnetic properties of a material. This provides additional information on a certain sample, beyond the hysteresis measurement.

FORC measurements are already used with geomagnetic and geological materials to determine the composition and particle size distribution of magnetic minerals inside the sample.

The FORC option allows the analysis of magnetostatic and exchange interactions between magnetically hard and soft phases on exchange-coupled nanocomposite magnetic materials.

It also enables the analysis of exchange-controlled spin valves in which the switching distribution and exchange-bias in materials and the switching of the free film magnetization are strongly influenced by the magnetic state of the fixed film.

As neighboring wires, points or particles are coupled, FORC measurements allow the examination of irreversible magnetic interactions or processes in an array.

FORC measurement data can comfortably be acquired and exported in MultiVu and are pre-formatted for easy import into FORCinel software. The FORC option works with all Quantum Design systems that include a VSM option or oven: PPMS, VersaLab and Dynacool. This enables measurements from 1.85 K to 1000 K at up to 16 Tesla.