Nanoscale Confinement of All-Optical Magnetic Switching in TbFeCo--Competition with Nanoscale Heterogeneity.

Single femtosecond optical laser pulses, of sufficient intensity, are demonstrated to reverse magnetization in a process known as all-optical switching. Gold two-wire antennas are placed on the all-optical switching film TbFeCo. These structures are resonant with the optical field, and they create a field enhancement in the near-field which confines the area where optical switching can occur.