We have added a new application note to our website explaining first-order reversal curves (FORC). Brad Dodrill, the author of this note, writes that FORCs enable us to obtain information about interactions or coercivity distributions, consequently providing us with "the relative proportions of reversible and irreversible components of the magnetization of a material." These are magnetic characterizations that are not able to be obtained from the hysteresis loop. FORCs will shed light on geomagnetic and geological materials, exchange-coupled nanocomposite permanent magnet materials, exchange-biased spin valves, and arrays of magnetic nanowires, nanodots, or nanoparticles. FORCs can be measured by using a magnetometer that measures DC or static magnetic properties, including our new PMC MicroMag™ VSM and AGM systems.
The application note, titled "First-Order Reversal-Curve (FORC) Measurements of Magnetic Materials," can be found on our website, or by clicking the image at the left.