Manipulation of vortices by magnetic domain walls

In a type-II superconductor, the magnetic field penetrates in the form of thin filaments called vortices. The controlled behavior of these vortices may provide the basis for a new generation of nanodevices. We present here a series of experiments showing simultaneous manipulation and imaging of individual vortices in a NbSe2 single crystal. The magnetic field from a Bloch wall in a ferrite garnet film (FGF) is used to manipulate the vortices. High-resolution magneto-optical imaging enables real-time observation of the vortex positions using the Faraday effect in the same FGF. Depending on the thickness of the sample, the vortices are either swept away or merely bent with the Bloch wall. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.