Co/Pt multilayer-based pseudo spin valves with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

Pseudo spin valves(SVs) exhibiting perpendicular magnetic anisotropy were prepared by magnetron sputtering. Magnetization measurements of the Co/Pt multilayers were performed to select the reference and free layers. The selection criteria are square magnetic hysteresis loops, weaker current shunting effect, and proper coercivity. The optimal reference layer and free layer are Pt(5.0 nm)/[Co(0.4 nm)/Pt(0.6 nm)]3/Co(0.4 nm)/Cu(3.0 nm)and Cu(3.0 nm)/[Co(0.4 nm)/Pt(1.5 nm)]4, respectively.The resulting pseudo SV exhibits two well-separated hysteresis loops when the field is applied perpendicular to the film plane. The minor hysteresis loop corresponding to the free layer shifts toward negative direction of the magnetic field axis, indicating ferromagnetic interlayer exchange coupling between the two magnetic layers. The coupling also enhances the coercivity(HC) of both layers. The perpendicular giant magnetoresistance(GMR) of 2.7 % is achieved with current in plane measurement. The GMR first increases when Pt seed layer is thickened, reaches a maximum of 3.0 % at 4 nm and then decreases with the further increase of thickness. But thicker Cu spacer layer always lowers the GMR of the SV.     

Co/Pt多层膜的结构和饱和磁化强度

采用离子束溅射技术制备Ｃｏ／Ｐｔ多层膜,用ＲＢＳ、小角ＸＲＤ和断面ＴＥＭ研究了多层膜的周期性调制结构,用ＶＳＭ研究了磁性层Ｃｏ和顺磁性层Ｐｔ的厚度变化对饱和磁化强度的影响。结果表明,多层膜具有良好的周期性层状结构,和设计值一致。样品的饱和磁化强度（Ｍｓ）随Ｃｏ层厚度增加而增大,随Ｐｔ层的厚度增大而减小。当Ｃｏ层和Ｐｔ层的厚度比一定时,样品的饱和磁化强度不受周期数的影响,符合Ｍｓ＝ＭｃｏｔＣｏ／Ｄ模     

FERROMAGNETIC RESONANCE STUDIES OF Co/CoFe_2O_4 MULTILAYERS

1.IntroductionMultilayershaveattractedconsiderableattentionfromfundamentalandtechnologicalinterests.Manynewphenomenainmetal-metalmultilayers,suchasthereductionorenhancementofmagnetizationatinterfaces[1],themagneticanisotropyl'1,theoscillatoryinterlay...     

Numerical calculation of magnetization behavior for Co nanowire array

Based on Monte Carlo method, the hysteresis loops for both individual Co nanowires and their array were simulated, and the influence of the strength of the dipolar interaction on the macroscopical magnetic properties of Co nanowire array was investigated. The simulated results indicate that the coercivity approximately increases linearly with the increase of the strength coefficient of the dipolar interaction. The interwire dipole interaction between wires tends to develop a magnetic easy axis perpendicular to the wire axis. In the magnetic reversal process, competition between the interwire dipolar interaction and the shape anisotropy of individual wires which forces the moments to orient along the axis makes the magnetic reversal of the array different from that of individual wire. For applied field parallel to wire axis, the coercivity of nanowire array increases rapidly with the increase of the nearest-neighbor interwire distance, and approximately increases linearly with the increase of the strength coefficient of the dipolar interaction for the fixed diameter and the nearest-neighbor interwire distance. While for applied field perpendicular to wire axis, in contrast, the coercivity decreases with increasing the nearest-neighbor interwire distance, and nearly remains a constant with the increase of the strength coefficient of the dipolar interaction.     

Co/Cr/Pd多层膜的磁性及其准确性

研究了测量程序对不同Cr层厚度的Co／Cr／Pd多层膜磁性的影响，分析了反磁化机理在不同测量程序中对磁性准确性的影响。     

[Co／Ti],[Co／Cu（Ni）]多层膜的结构与磁性

用双对向靶溅射方法制备了具有非晶磁性的「Ｃｏ／Ｔｉ」３０，「Ｃｏ／Ｃｕ（Ｎｉ）３０」两组多层膜，分别用Ｘ射线衍射，透射电镜和振动样品磁强计做了结构和磁性测量，在以非晶Ｃｏ和Ｃｉｕ－Ｎｉ合金构成的「Ｃｏ／Ｃｕ（Ｎｉ）」多层膜中，发现饱和磁化强度Ｍｓ随非磁性层厚度ｄｓ的增国发生振荡变化；在以非晶Ｃｏ和Ｔｉ构成的「Ｃｏ／Ｔｉ」多层膜中，ＭＳ和则随ｄｓ的增加而减小。     

Magnetron sputtering deposition of [FePt/Ag]n multilayers for perpendicular recording

[FePt/Ag]n multilayers were deposited on glass substrates by RF magnetron sputtering and ex situ annealed at 550℃ for 30 min. The effects of inserted Ag layer thickness and the number of bilayer repetitions （n） on the structure and magnetic properties of the multilayers were investigated. It was found that the difference between in-plane and out-of-plane coercivities varied with an increase of inserted Ag layer thickness in the [FePt 2 nm/Ag x nm]10 multilayers. The ratio of out-of-plane coercivity to in-plane coercivity reached the maximum value with the Ag layer thickness of 5 nm, indicating that the Ag layer thickness plays an important role in obtaining perpendicular orientation. For the [FePt 2 nm/Ag 5 um]n multilayers, perpendicular orientation is also influenced by n. The maximum value of the ratio of out-of-plane coercivity to in-plane coercivity appeared when n was given as 8. It was found that the [FePt 2 nm/Ag 5 nm]8 had a high perpendicular coercivity of 520 kA/m and a low in-plane one of 88 kA/m, which shows a strong perpendicular anisotropy.     

Co/Pt多层膜的调制结构对磁光性能的影响

研究了Ｃｏ／Ｐｔ多层膜中,Ｃｏ层厚度,Ｃｏ、Ｐｔ含量比,溅射温度对多层膜磁光性能的影响。研究发现Ｃｏ层厚度及Ｃｏ、Ｐｔ含量比对Ｃｏ／ｐｔ多层膜的磁光性能起决定性影响。当ｔＣｏ〈０．４ｎｍ,ｔＣｏ／ｔＰｔ＝１／２时。可获得较好的综合磁光性能;适当提高溅射时基体的温度,可改善多层膜的结晶性并获得较好的调制周期结构,最终改善其磁光性能。     

Inter-granular exchange coupling and magnetic anisotropy of Ta/Ru/Co-23 at%Pt perpendicular thin films with different Ru underlayer thicknesses

In the present work, a series of Ta/Ru/Co-23 at%Pt thin films with varied Ru underlayer thicknesses were fabricated by magnetron sputtering. All of the films show c-axis preferred orientation perpendicular to the film surface. The drop of c/a ratio and lattice expansion of Co–Pt layer with the increase in Ru underlayer thickness was revealed by X-ray diffraction(XRD). The coercivity of the Ta/Ru/Co–Pt thin films increases drastically with Ru underlayer thickness increasing, due to the enhancement of effective magneto-crystalline anisotropy constant and exchange decoupling of magnetic nano-grains. The enhancement of effective magneto-crystalline anisotropy constant is ascribed to the lattice deformation of Co–Pt layer by mismatching the Ru layer and Co–Pt surface.Moreover, the exchange decoupling of magnetic nanograins is attributed to the further isolation of magnetic nano-grains.     

Study on magnetization reversal of perpendicular recording media by in-field MFM observation

In-field MFM observation technology was employed to study the perpendicular recording medium under various perpendicular magnetic fields. A magnetization reversal field (H_R) map method was performed to reveal the magnetization reversal behavior of the medium. Under low magnetic field, some specific areas firstly reversed at a random position and then these reversed areas grew up. Under a high magnetic field, the magnetization reversal process tended to occur at the boundary between the reversed area and the non-reversed area. The simulation results implied that the long-range spatial interaction exists in the real media, which results in the bigger magnetic cluster. A simple experimental method was first proposed to estimate activation volume. The experimental activation volume agreed with the result calculated by the dynamic coercivity method.     

气相沉积铁钇多层膜的磁学性能

研究了气相沉积技术制备的Fe/Y多层膜的磁学性能,试验结果表明,当多层膜中铁层厚度减少到1．4nm时,薄膜由铁磁性转变为超顺磁性;多层膜的饱和磁化强度随铁层厚度的减少和钇层厚度的增加而显著降低。     

STRUCTURE, MAGNETISM AND MAGNETORESISTANCE OF ANNEALED Co/Cu DISCONTINUOUS MULTILAYERS

1.IntroductionGiantmagnetoresistance(GMR)inmultilayprsandgranularfilmshasattractedmuchattentionforitsimportanceintheoriesandapplications.Recently,inordertoredlicethesaturationmagneticfieldofGMRl'orlow--fieldsensorapplications,someattemptshavebeenmadetoprepareintermediatesystemsbetweenmultilayersandgranularfiimsfl--6],suchasmultilayerswith1lltrathinandthereforediscontinuousmagneticlayersll,2]orannealedmagneticmultilayers[3--6].However,theverythinmagneticlayersbecomesuperparamagneticatroomtemp…     

Magnetic anisotropy of Co/Cu/Co nanocrystalline films upon magnetic annealing

The magnetic anisotropy of Co/Cu/Co films with the thickness of the copper spacer corresponding to the antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic indirect exchange coupling between Co layers has been studied. The films deposited on naturally oxidized (111) Si single crystals were produced by magnetron sputtering. The films were annealed at 240°C. Such an annealing virtually neither changes the grain size nor leads to the mixing of layers; i.e., no disturbance of the coupling type between the cobalt layers takes place. Changes in the surface and induced magnetic anisotropy and in the effective energy of indirect exchange coupling have been studied upon annealing in the presence and absence of a magnetic field. It has been found that the shape of surface inhomogeneities in the films changes upon annealing in the magnetic field applied along the film plane, which substantially affects, the surface anisotropy. In the films characterized by antiferromagnetic coupling, the easy axis of magnetization is induced only in the magnetic fields exceeding the saturation field. The induced-anisotropy constant estimated theoretically agrees well with those determined experimentally.     

Microstructure and magnetic properties of Ti/Co/Ti films

The two series of as-deposited and annealed Ti/Co/Ti thin films were deposited by magnetron sputtering onto glass substrates at room temperature. The structural and magnetic properties of the films at room temperature were investigated as function of Co layer thickness. X-ray diffraction (XRD) profiles show Co nanograins are formed as the hexagonal-close-packed (hcp) structure. The perpendicular coercivity of the Ti(15 nm)/Co(30 nm)/Ti(15 nm) film annealed at 450 ℃ for 30 min is about 288 kA·m-1 .     

Electrodeposited Ni,Fe,Co and Cu single and multilayer nanowire arrays on anodic aluminum oxide template

The Ni, Fe, Co and Cu single and multilayer nanowire arrays to make perpendicular magnetic recording media were fabricated with nanoporous anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) templates from Watt solution and additives by the DC electrodeposition. The results show that the diameters of Ni, Fe, Co and Cu single and multilayer nanowires in AAO templates are 40–80 nm and the lengths are about 30 μm with the aspect ratio of 350–750. The magnetic properties of the prepared nanowires are different under different electrodepositing conditions. The remanences (B_r) of Ni/Cu/Fe multilayer nanowires are lower than those of others multilayer nanowires, and coercivity (H_c) of Ni/Cu/Fe multilayer nanowires are lower than those of others multilayer nanowires. These are compatible with the required conditions of high density magnetic media devices that should have the low coercivity to easily success magnetization and high remanence to keep magnetization after removal of magnetic field.     

In-plane Uniaxial Anisotropy and Magnetization Reversal Mechanism of FeCo Films by Strip Pattern

Strip-like Fe Co films were patterned by a traditional lithograph process from intrinsically isotropic continuous Fe Co films. The strip-patterned Fe Co film shows a strong in-plane uniaxial magnetic anisotropy with easy axis along the length direction of the strip. The angular dependences of remanence ratio, switching field, and coercivity indicate that the magnetization reversal mechanism of the strip-patterned Fe Co film is coherent rotation and domain wall depinning when the applied field is near the hard axis and easy axis, respectively. The consistency of the experimental hysteresis loops of the strip-patterned Fe Co film and calculated hysteresis loops with a simple in-plane uniaxial anisotropy model indicates that the strip-patterned Fe Co film behaves as a single domain. The absence of the domain wall and the strong in-plane anisotropy field make the strip-patterned Fe Co films have much potential for high-frequency application.     

The effect of multilayer structure on magnetic properties of FePt thin films

The Fe/Pt multilayer films with different structures were deposited by RF magnetron sputtering on glass substrates, and the L1₀-FePt films were obtained after theas-deposited samples were subjected to vacuum annealing at various temperatures. Results show that the Fe/Pt multilayer structure can effectively reduce the ordering temperature of FePt film, and the in-plane coercivity of [Fe (5.2 nm)/Pt (5.2 nm)]₇ multilayers can reach 161.2 kA/m after annealed at 350 ℃ for 30 min. When Fe and Pt layer thickness is equal, the coercivity of the film is the largest. On the other hand, the different Fe-Pt crystalline phases such as Fe₃Pt and FePt₃ phases are formed after annealing when the thickness ratio of Fe/Pt deviates from 1 after annealing. When Fe and Pt have the same thickness, the thinner single layer gets the lower ordering temperature and the larger coercivity.     

Magnetization reversal of a double-layer exchange-coupled ferromagnetic film

A theoretical investigation of magnetization reversal of a double-layer magnetic film with an easy-plane and easy-axis anisotropy has been performed. An analytical expression for the magnetization distribution in the layers in the presence of a magnetic field has been obtained. The calculations performed on the basis of the analytical relationships obtained show that when the thickness of the layers is close to the width of a magnetic inhomogeneity, it substantially affects the magnitude of the critical field for the magnetization reversal of the sample and the shape of the magnetization curve. It is also shown that a decrease in the exchange coupling between the layers leads to an increase in the magnitude of the critical field of magnetization reversal.     

Effect of tunneling barrier as spacer on exchange coupling of CoFeB/AlOx/Co trilayer structures

Magnetic tunneling junctions (MTJs) have a sandwiched structure, which comprises a top ferromagnetic (FM1) layer, an insulating tunneling layer (spacer), and a bottom ferromagnetic (FM2) layer. Exchange coupling in MTJs has been extensively widely examined because the effect of spacer thickness on the ferromagnetic spin-coupling can be exploited in read-head sensors, spin-valve structures, and magntoresistance random access memories (MRAMs). In this investigation, MTJs were deposited in the sequence, glass/CoFeB(50 Å)/AlO_x(d)/Co(100 Å), where the thickness of the AlO_x layer d = 12, 17, 22, 26 or 30 Å. Saturation magnetization (M_s) results demonstrate that the exchange coupling strength and coercivity (H_c) can be varied considerably by varying the tunneling barrier AlO_x spacer. The X-ray diffraction patterns (XRD) include a main peak from hexagonal close-packed (HCP) Co with a highly (0 0 2) textured structure at 2θ = 44.7°, and AlO_x and CoFeB are amorphous phases. The full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the Co (0 0 2) peak declines as the AlO_x thickness increases, revealing that the Co layer becomes more crystalline. The magnetic results reveal that the magnetic characteristics are related to the Co crystallinity. The exchange coupling strength increases with AlO_x thickness. The coercivity (H_c) also increases, because the Co crystallinity is eliminated.