Effects of an adjacent metal surface on spin wave propagation

We experimentally investigate and model the effects of a copper surface adjacent to a surface on which spin waves propagate in a thin film of yttrium iron garnet (YIG). Investigation was performed using a phase detection method, which can map out the spin wave velocity as a function wavevector for small wavevector with high resolution. This velocity is in good agreement with a simple model and allows for extraction of the separation between the YIG film and the copper.