Branched domains in the intermediate state of metamagnets

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Abstract
The authors have studied the zero temperature properties of the intermediate state of an Ising metamagnet in a simple geometry (infinite slab of thickness D). For D small they present an analytical expression for the periodicity of the stripe structure as a function of the applied field H; this allows them to obtain the asymptotic behaviour of the periodicity as H approaches the critical fields. Because of dipolar interactions, branching occurs in the domain structure above a critical thickness Dc(H). The basic asymmetry between the para- and antiferromagnetic phases yields a rich phase diagram in the (D, H) plane; they analyse the nature and boundaries of the first few branched patterns in that plane; these agree with their previous treatment of Ising dipolar ferromagnets. Finite temperature effects are briefly discussed.