Physica C 503 (2014) 166–169

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Physica C
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/physc

Vortex–antivortex dynamics in superconductor-antiparallel magnetic

dipoles bilayers
Cléssio L.S. Lima ⇑
Núcleo de Tecnologia, Centro Acadêmico do Agreste, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, 55002-970 Caruaru, PE, Brazil

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Artificial superconductor (S)/ferromagnet (F) hybrid structures composed by a S film and textured F layer
Received 27 December 2013 have attracted great interest in the last fifteen years. In the limit of high values of magnetic moments, the
Received in revised form 17 April 2014 ferromagnetic layer filled with magnetic particles (dipoles, nanodiscs, microrings, bars, etc.) can induce
Accepted 3 May 2014
spontaneous creation and stabilization of vortex–antivortex (v–av) pairs in the S layer. These v–av mol-
Available online 10 May 2014
ecules interact strongly with external applied currents inducing their annihilation or movement. Despite
numerous studies about this subject, only a few of them emphasize the microscopic nature of this phe-
Keywords:
nomena. In this work, the intricate dynamics of v–av molecules birth–death events and how this process
Superconductor–ferromagnet hybrids
Vortex–antivortex pairs
influences macroscopic quantities are investigated.
Superconductivity Ó 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
The study of superconducting materials, in particular nanoscale
materials is, nowadays, performed in more advanced way than
past decades. Instead of the manufacturing and then after getting
system properties, the nanoscience allows currently build nano-
structures with desired physical characters [1]. In type II supercon-
ductors, the nanostructuring using artificial pinning potentials
allows us to obtain materials with optimized physical properties,
such as critical current [2] and critical temperature [3].
Among many artificial pinning potentials, confinement by mag-
netic sources takes a prominent position because their magnetic
moment can be easily controlled and thus, their pinning potential
has high degree of tunability [4]. Based on this, several experimen-
tal and theoretical works analyzed hybrid structures made of sin-
gle ferromagnetic parts or networks ferromagnetic sources (F)
next to superconducting films (S) (for a review see [5]). In the case
that F and S layers are physically separated by introducing insulat-
ing material between them, the proximity effect [6] is inhibited
and their mutual interaction occurs via the magnetic stray fields
generated by the F layer or due to the shielding supercurrents in
the S layer. In general, the magnetic field created by the S supercur-
rents in the magnetic film is negligible, if one takes into consider-
ation the field generated by ferromagnets in the superconductor.
Therefore, the S layer slightly influence the F layer, but the opposite
⇑ Tel.: +55 8134592949.
E-mail address: clsl@df.ufpe.br
is not valid. The field created by the ferromagnet is strong enough
to modify the properties of the S layer creating a nonuniform mag-
netic potential in the superconductor.
In a particular case of no external magnetic field applied and
magnetic sources with high enough values of magnetization, the
magnetic flux lines in S films are due to the high value of the field
created by ferromagnets, so they can just show vortices and anti-
vortices (v–av) pairs [7]. These v–av molecules can be stabilized
around each magnetic element, and their movement can be manip-
ulated [8] and guided [9] under the action of external currents,
serving as base for fluxonic devices in the future.
In this work, the ac dynamics of v–av pairs spontaneous created
by a square array of magnetic dipoles is investigated. Unlike the
previous case already studied, where a common square lattice of
dipoles was used [10], now the dynamics is analyzed using a square
array with dipoles arranged in an antiparallel way. Although, by
symmetry, the average value of the y component of the electric field
is zero, the results show a rich and interesting sequence of periodic
creation and annihilation of v–av pairs.
2. The model
A system composed by a thin superconducting film and a mag-
netic dipole layer deposited on the top of the superconductor is
investigated as shown in Fig. 1a. The superconducting film is
assumed to have an infinite area (periodic boundary conditions
in x and y axis applied) and thickness d, penetration depth k  d
and coherence length n ¼ 10d. The magnetic dipole layer is filled

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.physc.2014.05.002
0921-4534/Ó 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
 C.L.S. Lima / Physica C 503 (2014) 166–169 167

Fig. 1. (a) Esquematic view of the bilayer made of a superconducting film of thickness d and an in-plane dipole array with antiparallel magnetic dipole moments. (b) Vortex
(black square)–antivortex (red circles) configuration for one pair per dipole. (For interpretation of the references to color in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web
version of this article.)

by a magnetic dipole square array (simulation cell of 8ap x8ap ,

where ap is the cell parameter) with a permanent magnetic dipole
moment polarized in plane, and neighbors dipoles in the x-axis
aligned in an antiparallel way. The layers are separated by a
distance of z0 > d=2 that enable them to avoid proximity effects
(similar to real insulating buffer layer). The total energy of the
vortex matter is given by
X   X
1
E¼ qi qj U vv ð~
r ij Þ þ Ec dij þ qj U v m ð~
rj Þ ð1Þ
i;j
2 j

where q is the vorticity (q ¼ 1 for vortices and antivortices).

U vv ðr ij Þ is the interaction energy between vortices, antivortices, or
vortex–antivortex located at r i and r j positions using Clem’s ansatz
for the order parameter. In the limit k  d; U vv ð~ r ij Þ ¼
 
2 2 /20
0 d ln j~rij j þ 2nc , where 0 ¼ 4pl k2 . Ec is the condensation energy
0
due to an isolated vortex (Ec ¼ 0:3750 ) and U v m is the interaction
energy between j-vortex located at rj position and the dipole array
calculated in the London limit. The total vorticity is maintained zero
P
because no external magnetic field is applied ( j qj ¼ 0).
The numerical algorithm is based on the assumption that the
v–av pair creation and annihilation time takes place in a so short
time interval that the motion of the vortex matter during it can
be neglected. Hence, the time evolution can be divide into two dis-
tinct parts: regular motion of the v–av governed by the Langevin
equation, and creation and/or annihilation of v–av pairs. For
further details, see Ref. [11].
3. Results and discussion
The equilibrium configuration of one v–av pair on each
magnetic dipole (Fig. 1b) was submitted to a sinus-wave ac exter-
nal current, ~ ^J 0 sinð2Pp tÞ, in order to study the v–av dynamics.
J app ¼ y
ga2
P is the period of the driving current, in units of t 0 ¼ d0p , and J 0 is
the current density amplitude. J app is slowly increased by steps of
dJ 0 ¼ 0:0125 from zero to the depairing current density J d (value
of current density that spontaneous v–av pairs unbinds even with-
out any magnetic field source). Since the external current is in y
direction, v–av pairs can move in the x direction due to the Lorentz
force inducing their approximation or separation, depending on
the magnetic moment orientation.
Fig. 2 shows the time average of the v–av pairs creation rate s
(%) and the mean v–av pair density per dipole hnpair i as a function
of the current density amplitude J 0 (J 0 in units of the depairing cur-
rent density J d ). Average values were obtained taken 106 time steps
after appropriate 105 time steps of relaxation. The v–av dynamics
changes dramatically when the current density amplitude J 0 is
Fig. 2. Time average of the v–av density hnpair i (bottom) and time average of the
creation rate s (up) as a function of the current density applied at different values of
driving current period P.
increased. If the current density amplitude is lower than a critical
value (J 0 =J d < 0:33), v–av pairs remains attached to in-plane dipole
oscillating around their equilibrium positions. In this regime, when
a vortex and an antivortex approximate one to another in a partic-
ular half-period of the ac driving, their next neighbors v–av pairs in
the x-axis are separated. In the second half-period of the ac driving,
it happens the opposite situation. As it can be seen, the number of
v–av pairs remains one and the creation rate is zero.
However, above that limit (J 0 =J d ¼ 0:33) it can be observed a
decreased in the number of the v–av pairs. hnpair i ¼ 0:5 for
P ¼ 1:0t 0 and it has higher constant values for the lower values
of P. In the same region, the v–av creation rate is small but nonzero.
hnpair i < 1 reveals an interesting phenomenon in general. Half of
v–av pairs are annihilated in the half period of the ac driving of
approximating while their next neighbors that are separating can
depinning from their equilibrium positions. These pairs that are
survivors induce an intricate v–av dynamics where creation and
annihilation of new pairs happens, as will be explained later.
If the external current amplitude is higher than 0:45J d the
nucleation rate graphs shows a sequence of peaks. A region
between any two peaks corresponds to a plateau in the hnpair ixJ
graph. The size of these plateaus depends on the period P of the
driving current density. Higher periods of time induce smaller pla-
teau lengths. As we see later, each one of these regions corresponds
to a particular v–av dynamics phase with v–av pairs creation and
annihilation happening in different times, positions and frequency.
In order to obtain a deeper understanding of the v–av dynamics the
time evolution of the v–av pair density and the y component of the
electric field were analyzed for P ¼ 0:1t 0 fixed. Fig. 3 reveals four
168 C.L.S. Lima / Physica C 503 (2014) 166–169

Fig. 3. Time series of applied current Japp (top), y component of electrical field Ey (middle) and v–av pair density npair (bottom) for P ¼ 0:1t 0 and J=Jd ¼ 0:32 (a), 0:40 (b), 0:55
(c) and 0:65 (d).

different dynamical regimes. Letters a; b; c and d corresponds to

the attached v–av pairs regime (J=J d ¼ 0:32), and the first three
dynamical phases of unpinned v–av pairs (J=J d ¼ 0:40; J=J d ¼ 0:55
and J=J d ¼ 0:65, respectively). In the last three cases, in a full cycle
of the external current, the v–av pairs density and the electric field
at y are modified repeatedly. External applied current density
exceeds the depinning current density (J 0 =J d > 0:33) and v–av pairs
move allowing the birth of new pairs. Annihilation of v–av pairs
happens when a vortex (antivortex) found a neighbors antivortex
(vortex) in the sample. At every half period of oscillation of the
external current density, one (J=J d ¼ 0:40), two (J=J d ¼ 0:55) or
three (J=J d ¼ 0:65) birth and death events of v–av pairs happens.
These current density amplitude values can be identified as being
roughly the intermediate positions of the plateaus in Fig. 2.
And finally, to have an exact idea of motion and creation/anni-
hilation of v–av pairs in the superconducting sample, a detailed
study of the instantaneous position of v–av pairs was made. In Figs.
4 (J=J d ¼ 0:40),5 (J=J d ¼ 0:55) and 6 (J=J d ¼ 0:65), using the same
current density amplitude values of Fig. 3b–d, a series of snapshots
of the v–av pairs positions during a full cycle of external current
density was analyzed. The birth of new v–av pairs is indicated by
a dotted ellipsoid and a star. The annihilation of v–av pairs is indi-
cated by a dotted ellipsoid and a cross sign. On the right side of

Fig. 5. Snapshots of moving vortices (full circles) and antivortices (empty circles) in
the superconducting film with antiparallel magnetic dipoles (left) and time series of
v–av density and external applied current (right) for P ¼ 0:1t0 and J=Jd ¼ 0:55.

these figures, graphs of external current density (black line) and

Fig. 4. Snapshots of moving vortices (full circles) and antivortices (empty circles) in
the superconducting film with antiparallel magnetic dipoles (left) and time series of
v–av density and external applied current (right) for P ¼ 0:1t 0 and J=Jd ¼ 0:4.
of v–av pairs density (red line) are superimposed and a vertical
bar indicates the exact value of the external current density for
each instantaneous v–av configuration associated. As can be seen,
there are different creation and annihilation sites of v–av pairs
depending on the external current amplitude values. Higher
external current (Fig. 6) induces more complex process (a greater
number of events) of creation and annihilation of v–av pairs.
 C.L.S. Lima / Physica C 503 (2014) 166–169 169

4. Conclusions

In summary, the vortex–antivortex dynamics interacting with a

periodic pinning substrate made of antiparallel magnetic dipoles
using ac currents with different time period P values was studied.
Periodic sequence of creation and annihilation of vortex–
antivortex pairs can happens and induces sharp oscillatory behav-
ior on v–av pair density and y-component of electric field time ser-
ies. The curves of time average of v–av pairs density reveal
plateaus that correspond to a mode-locking effect between the
excitation frequency and the frequency of birth–death of v–av
pairs events. Each plateau corresponds to a specific finite increas-
ing number of v–av pairs that are created and annihilated in differ-
ent positions and number of times.

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Fig. 6. Snapshots of moving vortices (full circles) and antivortices (empty circles) in
the superconducting film with antiparallel magnetic dipoles (left) and time series of
v–av density and external applied current (right) for P ¼ 0:1t 0 and J=Jd ¼ 0:65.