Low-energy properties of two-dimensional magnetic nanostructures: interparticle interactions and disorder effects

The low-energy properties of two-dimensional ensembles of dipole-coupled magnetic nanoparticles are studied as a function of structural disorder and particle coverage. Already small deviations from a square particle arrangement lift the degeneracies of the microvortex (MV) magnetic configuration and result in a strongly inhomogeneous magnetic order of the particle ensemble. The energy distribution of metastable states is determined. For a low degree of disorder a strongly asymmetric shape with a pronounced peak of the ground-state energy results. In contrast, for a strong disorder a Gaussian-like distribution is obtained. The average dipole energy Ēdip decreases with increasing structural disorder. Above a coverage-dependent degree of disorder Ēdip resembles the average dipole energy of a random particle set-up, for which a simple scaling behaviour is derived. The role of vacancies has been studied for a square particle array by determining the angular distribution of the preferred MV angle as a function of the vacancy concentration. Preferred angles along the axial as well as along the diagonal directions of the square array are obtained. A corresponding investigation for disturbed square arrays yields preferred MV angles only along the axial directions. The effect of dipole-quadrupole corrections resulting from the finite size of the particles is quantified.