Interfacial Effect on Photo-Modulated Magnetic Properties of Core/Shell-Structured NiFe/NiFe(2)O(4) Nanoparticles

Photo-modulated magnetism has become an emerging method for technological applications, such as magneto-optical devices. In this work, by introducing oxygen during rapid thermal annealing, NiFe/NiFe(2)O(4) core/shell nanoparticles were successfully fabricated by pulsed laser deposition. Obvious photo-modulated ferromagnetism was observed in core/shell nanoparticles confined in Al(2)O(3) film. Theoretical and experimental investigations indicate much more photogenerated electrons are captured at the interface of NiFe/NiFe(2)O(4) compared with NiFe nanoparticles due to interfacial effect, resulting in the improved ferromagnetism under light irradiation. This work provides a promising strategy for optical engineering design of optical information storage, high-speed wireless communication, and magneto-optical semiconductor devices.