Design and Realization of Broadband Magnonic Spectrometers With Local Electrical Outputs

Abstract

Microscopic radio-frequency (RF) devices based on propagating spin waves (SWs) are promising for compact, energy-efficient RF signal processing, but their implementation is impeded by fabrication complexity and the lack of efficient electrical readout. In this work, we demonstrate a SW-based Rowland circle spectrometer with electrical input and local electrical output transducers. The device is realized using a scalable fabrication process based on sputter deposition and wet-chemical etching of Yttrium-Iron-Garnet (YIG), forming concave grating structures with micrometer-scale features. The device functionality is confirmed by combined electrical and magneto-optical measurements, which show that the deflection of SW wavefronts at different input frequencies closely follows the analytically predicted behavior. The linear excitation of SWs via two input tones further confirms the spectrometer operation for simultaneously propagating waves. Beyond the single-device demonstration, we propose a concept for scalable architectures comprising multiple Rowland circles with tunable operating points. When combined with broadband parallel electrical readout, this approach enables control over bandwidth and spectral resolution, which are relevant to spectral occupancy detection in wireless communication systems.