Bias voltage dependence of tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance in magnetic tunnel junctions with MgO and Al2O3 tunnel barriers

Tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance (TAMR) is observed in tunnel junctions with transition metal electrodes as the moments are rotated from in-plane to out-of-plane in sufficiently large magnetic fields that the moments are nearly parallel to one another. A complex angular dependence of the tunneling resistance is found with twofold and fourfold components that vary strongly with bias voltage. Distinctly different TAMR behaviors are obtained for devices formed with highly textured crystalline MgO(001) and amorphous Al2O3 tunnel barriers. A tight-binding model shows that a fourfold angular dependence can be explained by the presence of an interface resonant state that affects the transmission of the contributing tunneling states through a spin-orbit interaction.     

Origin of the tunnel anisotropic magnetoresistance in Ga(1-x)Mn(x)As/ZnSe/Ga(1-x)Mn(x)As magnetic tunnel junctions of II-VI/III-V heterostructures

We investigated spin-dependent transport in magnetic tunnel junctions made of III-V Ga(1-x)Mn(x)As electrodes and II-VI ZnSe tunnel barriers. The high tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) ratio up to 100% we observed indicates high spin polarization at the barrier/electrodes interfaces. We found anisotropic tunneling conductance having a magnitude of 10% with respect to the direction of magnetization to linearly depend on the magnetic anisotropy energy of Ga(1-x)Mn(x)As. This proves that the spin-orbit interactions in the valence band of Ga(1-x)M(x)As are responsible for the tunnel anisotropic magnetoresistance (TAMR) effect.     

Exchange-mediated anisotropy of (ga,mn)as valence-band probed by resonant tunneling spectroscopy

We report on experiments and theory of resonant tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance (TAMR) in AlAs/GaAs/AlAs quantum wells (QW) contacted by a (Ga,Mn)As ferromagnetic electrode. Such resonance effects manifest themselves by bias-dependent oscillations of the TAMR signal correlated to the successive positions of heavy (HH) and light (LH) quantized hole energy levels in GaAs QW. We have modeled the experimental data by calculating the spin-dependent resonant tunneling transmission in the frame of the 6 x 6 valence-band k.p theory. The calculations emphasize the opposite contributions of the (Ga,Mn)As HH and LH subbands near the Gamma point, unraveling the anatomy of the diluted magnetic semiconductor valence band.     

Gate-Voltage-Induced Magnetization Reversal and Tunneling Anisotropic Magnetoresistance in a Single Molecular Magnet with Temperature Gradient

We study the control of gate voltage over the magnetization of a single-molecule magnet(SMM) weakly coupled to a ferromagnetic and a normal metal electrode in the presence of the temperature gradient between two electrodes.It is demonstrated that the SMM's magnetization can change periodically with periodic gate voltage due to the driving of the temperature gradient.Under an appropriate matching of the electrode polarization,the temperature difference and the pulse width of gate voltage,the SMM's magnetization can be completely reversed in a period of gate voltage.The corresponding flipping time can be controlled by the system parameters.In addition,we also investigate the tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance(TAMR) of the device in the steady state when the ferromagnetic electrode is noncollinear with the easy axis of the SMM,and show the jump characteristic of the TAMR.     

Anisotropic interface magnetoresistances in Pt(111)/Co n /Pt(111)

It is shown in terms of a fully relativistic spin-polarized ab initio-type approach that in Pt/Co/Pt trilayers two types of anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) have to be distinguished: an in-plane and an out-of-plane AMR. The obtained results, namely the magnetic field dependence as well as the thickness dependence of both AMR types are in very good agreement with a very recent experimental study, in which the in-plane as well as the out-of-plane AMR was reported for this system. The difference between the two types of AMR is visualized in terms of layer-resolved resistivities. In particular, it is confirmed that the anisotropic interface magnetoresistance (AIMR) introduced in the recent publication mainly originates in the vicinity of the Co/Pt interfaces.     

Tunnel anisotropic magnetoresistance in graphene with Rashba spin-orbit interaction

Ballistic transport in a graphene-based normal/ferromagnetic barrier/normal junction in the presence of Rashba-type spin-orbit interaction (RSOI) is investigated by the non-equilibrium Green's function approach. It is found that due to the interplay between ferromagnetic exchange coupling and RSOI, the energy dispersion in the ferromagnetic barrier depends on the magnetization direction. The conductance changes by varying the magnetization direction, resulting in a tunnel anisotropic magnetoresistance (TAMR). The predicted TAMR effect oscillates with the RSOI strength or on-site energy, which is efficiently controllable by the gate voltage, making this junction very promising in spintronics applications.     

Tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance in multilayer-(Co/Pt)/AlO_(x)/Pt structures

We report observations of tunneling anisotropic magnetoresitance (TAMR) in vertical tunnel devices with a ferromagnetic multilayer-(Co/Pt) electrode and a nonmagnetic Pt counterelectrode separated by an AlOx barrier. In stacks with the ferromagnetic electrode terminated by a Co film the TAMR magnitude saturates at 0.15% beyond which it shows only weak dependence on the magnetic field strength, bias voltage, and temperature. For ferromagnetic electrodes terminated by two monolayers of Pt we observe order(s) of magnitude enhancement of the TAMR and a strong dependence on field, temperature and bias. The discussion of experiments is based on relativistic ab initio calculations of magnetization orientation dependent densities of states of Co and Co/Pt model systems.     

Tunneling Anisotropic Magnetoresistance in L1_0-MnGa Based Antiferromagnetic Perpendicular Tunnel Junction

We report on the tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance in antiferromagnetic perpendicular tunnel junction consisting of L1_0-MnGa/FeMn/AlO_x/Pt grown on GaAs(001) substrates by molecular-beam epitaxy. The temperature-dependent perpendicular exchange bias effect reveals an exchange coupling between ferromagnetic L1_0-MnGa and antiferromagnetic FeMn. The rotation of antiferromagnetic spins in FeMn can be driven by perpendicularly magnetized L1_0-MnGa due to the exchange-spring effect at the interface and leads to roomtemperature tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance ratio of 0.86%. We also find that the tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance strongly depends on temperature and angle. These results have broadened the material selection range for high performance antiferromagnetic spintronic devices.     

Anisotropic magnetoresistance components in (Ga,Mn)As

We explore the basic physical origins of the noncrystalline and crystalline components of the anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) in (Ga,Mn)As. The sign of the noncrystalline AMR is found to be determined by the form of spin-orbit coupling in the host band and by the relative strengths of the nonmagnetic and magnetic contributions to the Mn impurity potential. We develop experimental methods yielding directly the noncrystalline and crystalline AMR components which are then analyzed independently. We report the observation of an AMR dominated by a large uniaxial crystalline component and show that AMR can be modified by local strain relaxation. Generic implications of our findings for other dilute moment systems are discussed.     

Itinerant electron transport in microscopically inhomogeneous magnetic fields

We report on magnetoresistance measurements in thin nickel films modulated by a periodic magnetic field emanating from micromagnetic arrays fabricated at the film surface. By increasing the strength of the magnetic potential using nickel and dysprosium micromagnets, we are able to quench the anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) in the film.     

Tunnelling anisotropic magnetoresistance of Fe/GaAs/Ag(001) junctions from first principles: effect of hybridized interface resonances

Results of first-principles calculations of the Fe/GaAs/Ag(001) epitaxial tunnel junctions reveal that hybridization of interface resonances formed at both interfaces can enhance the tunnelling anisotropic magnetoresistance (TAMR) of the systems. This mechanism is manifested by a non-monotonic dependence of the TAMR effect on the thickness of the tunnel barrier, with a maximum for intermediate thicknesses. A detailed scan of k(∥)-resolved transmissions over the two-dimensional Brillouin zone proves an interplay between a few hybridization-induced hot spots and a contribution to the tunnelling from the vicinity of the [Formula: see text] point. This interpretation is supported by calculated properties of a simple tight-binding model of the junction, which reproduce qualitatively most of the features of the first-principles theory.     

Direct comparison of anisotropic magnetoresistance and planar Hall effect in epitaxial Fe3O4 thin films

The angular dependence of anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) and planar Hall effect (PHE) were studied as a function of temperatures from the same epitaxial Fe₃O₄ film on MgO(001) substrates. The PHE contains only a twofold angular dependence, but the AMR below 200 K is constituted with both twofold and fourfold symmetric terms. Our results also prove that the origin of the fourfold symmetry of AMR is related to the lattice symmetry rather than the spin scattering near the antiphase boundaries.     

Planar Hall effect in electrodeposited CoCu/Cu multilayer

Electrodeposited CoCu/Cu multilayers were investigated by measuring both anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) and planar Hall effect (PHE) simultaneously. Studies have been carried out on a [Co(3 nm)/Cu(4 nm)]₅₀ multilayer sample, where a maximum of ?8.8 % GMR was observed at room temperature. A direct comparison of AMR and PHE output has been made both as a function of field and its relative orientation with respect to the current. Marked changes in PHE loops were observed at different angles (between magnetic field and applied current) whereas no noticeable changes could be found for AMR results. Such PHE outputs are the manifestations of complex spin reorganization due to strong antiferromagnetic-coupling between adjacent magnetic layers. In case of angular dependence output, when the applied field is less than the coercive field, the PHE output shows a deviation from the Sin2θ dependence that can be correlated to the domain wall propagation.     

The origin and control of the sources of AMR in (Ga,Mn)As devices

We present details of our experimental and theoretical study of the components of the anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) in (Ga,Mn)As. We develop experimental methods to yield directly the non-crystalline and crystalline AMR components which are then independently analysed. These methods are used to explore the unusual phenomenology of the AMR in ultra thin (5 nm) (Ga,Mn)As layers and to demonstrate how the components of the AMR can be engineered through lithography induced local lattice relaxations. We expand on our previous [A.W. Rushforth, et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 99 (2007) 147207] theoretical analysis and numerical calculations to present a simplified analytical model for the origin of the non-crystalline AMR. We find that the sign of the non-crystalline AMR is determined by the form of the spin-orbit coupling in the host band and by the relative strengths of the non-magnetic and magnetic contributions to the impurity potential.     

工艺参量对Ni80Fe20薄膜结构与磁电阻特性的影响

NiFe薄膜在室温下具有较高的各向异性磁电阻率,可广泛应用于磁记录和磁传感器.本文研究了工艺条件对电子束蒸发方法制备的Ni80Fe20薄膜磁电阻特性及微结构的影响,获得了制备各向异性磁电阻率达3%~4%的Ni80Fe20薄膜的工艺条件.     

Planar Hall effect and magnetoresistance in Ni81Fe19 and Co square shaped thin films

Ni₈₁Fe₁₉ and Co thin films have been fabricated and their transport properties have been investigated for potential applications in ultra sensitive magnetic field sensors. The Ni₈₁Fe₁₉ films exhibit an anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) of 2.5% with a coercivity 2.5 Oe and the Co films exhibit an AMR of 0.7% with coercivity 11 Oe. Large planar Hall effect magnetoresistance values at room temperature are reported for both cases. An unbalanced Wheatstone bridge model is proposed to describe quantitatively the observed experimental Planar Hall Effect data.     

Origin of the planar Hall effect in nanocrystalline Co60Fe20B20

An angle dependent analysis of the planar Hall effect (PHE) in nanocrystalline single-domain Co(60)Fe(20)B(20) thin films is reported. In a combined experimental and theoretical study we show that the transverse resistivity of the PHE is entirely driven by anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR). Our results for Co(60)Fe(20)B(20) obtained from first principles theory in conjunction with a Boltzmann transport model take into account the nanocrystallinity and the presence of 20 at.?% boron. The ab initio AMR ratio of 0.12% agrees well with the experimental value of 0.22%. Furthermore, we experimentally demonstrate that the anomalous Hall effect contributes negligibly in the present case.     

Reversing the training effect in exchange biased CoO/Co bilayers

We performed a detailed study of the training effect in exchange biased CoO/Co bilayers. High-resolution measurements of the anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) display an asymmetry in the first magnetization reversal process and training in the subsequent reversal processes. Surprisingly, the AMR measurements as well as magnetization measurements reveal that it is possible to partially reinduce the untrained state by performing a hysteresis measurement with an in-plane external field perpendicular to the cooling field. Indeed, the next hysteresis loop obtained in a field parallel to the cooling field resembles the initial asymmetric hysteresis loop, but with a reduced amount of spin rotation occurring at the first coercive field. This implies that the antiferromagnetic domains, which are created during the first reversal after cooling, can be partially erased.     

Measurement of magnetic parameters of nanometer-thick conducting magnetic films using anisotropic magnetoresistive effect

The angular dependences of anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) are measured in conducting ferromagnetic films of nanometer thickness and layered structures containing such films and having the shape of narrow ribbons. These structures are used for preparing spin-dependent magnetic tunnel junctions possessing a giant magnetoresistance. The possibility of determining the main magnetic parameters, which are important for preparing magnetic junctions, by AMR angular measurements is demonstrated experimentally. The magnetic anisotropy axis, the saturating magnetic field, and the coercivity are determined in a 25-nm-thick permalloy (Py) film, in the structures FeMn film (15 nm)-Py film (10 nm) deposited by RF magnetron sputtering on a oxidized silicon substrate, as well as in the structure FeMn (15 nm)-Py (10 nm)-SiC (1.5 nm)-Py (10 nm) deposited on a sitall substrate. It is shown that, under the same conditions of Py films deposition, the magnetic anisotropy axis in the FeMn-Py structure is turned through 90° relative to the anisotropy axis of Py in structures without FeMn layers. The value of the exchange bias fields of the magnetization reversal measured in the structure FeMn (15 nm)-Py (10 nm)-SiC (1.5 nm)-Py (10 nm) by the AMR method is in good agreement with the result of measurement by the inductive method.     

Anisotropic magnetoresistance in electrodeposited cobalt antidot arrays

Nanosphere lithography is a simple and accessible technique for nanostructuring of materials. Combined with electrodeposition, it allows the production of compact, ordered antidot networks. In contrast to other lithographic techniques, the resulting nanostructure shows periodicity also along the growth axis. Interesting results are expected for the magnetoresistive behavior of such structures as function of thickness, due to the confinement of electronic routes and the strong shape anisotropy. We were able to electrodeposit cobalt antidot structures of homogeneous and controlled thickness directly over silicon substrates. Room temperature anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) as function of thickness and nanosphere diameter are presented, with the magnetic field applied in plane, transverse to the applied current. An overlap of two effects is observed. At fields lower than 2 kOe typical hysteretic AMR peaks appear around the coercive field, and tend to disappear for thicker films. At higher fields, a reversible contribution, caused by the forced magnetization that rotates the spin away from the local current direction, lowers the magnetoresistance, before it reaches its saturation value.