Magneto-mechanical effects in a flexible magnetic system studied through combined MOKE magnetometry and mechanical testing.

We explore the magnetic properties of a thin Co film deposited on Kapton® substrates using the magneto-optical Kerr effect in a longitudinal configuration. We developed a magnetometer integrated with a tensile testing machine to investigate magnetization reversal phenomena under applied strain. The tensile machine, custom-designed to fit the experimental constraints, applies uniaxial stress to the samples, facilitating the study of magnetoelastic effects. Calibration using digital image correlation ensures accurate strain measurements. Our findings demonstrate that the application of strain significantly influences the magnetization curves, highlighting the emergence of anisotropies and changes in coercive and saturation fields.