Control of spin-wave phase and wavelength by electric current on the microscopic scale

We demonstrate experimentally the ability to control by electric current the phase and the wavelength of spin waves propagating in submicrometer magnetic waveguides. The dependence of the spin-wave characteristics on the current and on the excitation frequency was determined by phase-resolved microfocus Brillouin light scattering spectroscopy. We show that moderately small currents are sufficient to induce nearly twofold changes of the wavelength and spin-wave phase shift of more than ±π radians over a propagation distance of several micrometers.