We present time-resolved measurements of gigahertz-scale magnetic dynamics caused by torque from a spin-polarized current. By working in the time domain, we determined the motion of the magnetic moment throughout the process of spin-transfer–driven switching, and we measured turn-on times of steady-state precessional modes. Time-resolved studies of magnetic relaxation allow for the direct measurement of magnetic damping in a nanomagnet and prove that this damping can be controlled electrically using spin-polarized currents.

Time-Domain Measurements of Nanomagnet Dynamics Driven by Spin-Transfer Torques