Abstract
Viscous remanent magnetization (VRM) in multidomain particles still
exhibits many puzzling properties deviating from the current theory of
VRM, based on Ne\’el’s single-domain model of magnetic
particles with an almost symmetric double-well potential. In larger
magnetic particles experimental evidence indicates that more complex
magnetization structures preferentially change from high-energy states
to low-energy states with large energy differences, such that VRM is
preferentially acquired by directed magnetization changes in strongly
asymmetric double-well potentials. Here a statistical model explains how
this trapdoor VRM (tVRM) naturally explains the experimental
observations of initial-state dependence, time-lag variation, non-linear
log t dependence, and acquisition-decay asymmetry for multidomain VRM.
It is discussed how tVRM can be experimentally distinguished from
single-domain VRM and how the new theory can help to improve age
determination by VRM analysis.