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Identification and minimization of losses in microscale spin-wave transducers

Felix Kohl1,*, Björn Heinz1, Ádám Papp2,3, Róbert Erdélyi2,3, Gyorgy Csaba2,3, and Philipp Pirro1

  • *Contact author: fkohl@rptu.de

Phys. Rev. Applied 25, 054064 – Published 26 May, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/j5s3-zvhr

Abstract

Magnonics is a promising platform for integrated radio-frequency (rf) devices, leveraging its inherent nonreciprocity and reconfigurability. However, the efficiency of spin-wave transducers driven by rf currents remains a major challenge. In this study, we systematically investigate a spin-wave transducer composed of micrometer-sized rf antennas on yttrium iron garnet films of different thickness—an ideal testbed for integrated magnonic devices. Using propagating spin-wave spectroscopy, we analyze spin-wave transmission, identifying key loss mechanisms and improving device efficiency by reducing ohmic resistance. The resulting improvements enable the reduction of insertion loss to below 10 dB in microscaled spin-wave transducers. At the same time large nonreciprocity can be exploited to achieve significant isolation on the microscale.

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Corrections

24 August, 2026

Correction: The first name of the fifth author contained a spelling error and has been fixed.

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