Controlling 4⁢f antiferromagnetic dynamics via itinerant electronic susceptibility

Optical manipulation of magnetism holds promise for future ultrafast spintronics, especially with lanthanides and their huge, localized 4⁢f magnetic moments. These 4f moments interact indirectly by spin polarizing the conduction electrons (the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida exchange interaction), influenced by interatomic orbital overlap, and the conduction electron's susceptibility around the Fermi level. Here, we study this influence in a series of 4⁢f antiferromagnets, Gd⁢T2⁢Si2 (T = Co, Rh, Ir), using ultrafast resonant x-ray diffraction. We observe a twofold increase in the ultrafast intersublattice angular momentum transfer rate between the materials, originating from modifications in the conduction electron susceptibility, as confirmed by first-principles calculations.