Ballistic magnetoresistance in different nanocontact configurations: a basis for future magnetoresistance sensors

We report ballistic magnetoresistance (BMR) values in magnetic nanocontacts for Ni, Co, and Fe. The samples range from atomic nanocontacts (smaller than 1 nm cross-section) to stable electrodeposited nanocontacts (up to 30 nm cross-section). The experiments are done at room temperature and up to 4 kOe applied field. We obtain values of stable BMR up to 700%. By manipulating the resistance and the contact shape electrochemically in situ we can have any desired value of BMR. We also discuss BMR in Ni microclusters contacted through pinholes on thin oxides with nanometer thick Ni and Co films with BMR up to 15%. All the experiments show that the BMR is a very local effect of the size and shape of the nanocontact. In this respect 2D and 3D domain wall calculations are presented. The experiments reported here show that magnetic nanocontacts have potential for development of highly compacted sensor.     

Direct observation of domain wall scattering in patterned Ni80Fe20 and Ni nanowires by current-voltage measurements

We present measurements of domain wall resistivity, pinned by nanoconstrictions in single layer ferromagnetic wires of Ni80Fe20 and Ni. Unpinning domain walls from the constriction by current-induced switching allows for an unambiguous measurement of their resistivity changes, namely, 1.7% in Ni80Fe20 and 1.82% in Ni and both positive, which supports the theory of spin-dependent impurity scattering. By deriving an empirical relation for the various constriction widths, the large percentage changes of resistivity in ballistic nanocontacts are reproduced, showing a correlation between domain wall magnetoresistance and ballistic magnetoresistance.     

From ballistic to non-ballistic magnetoresistance in nanocontacts: theory and experiments

This paper reports on a large set of experiments using different materials and samples to explore the ballistic and non-ballistic magnetoresistence in magnetic nanocontacts. Ballistic contacts are obtained with 3-d magnetic crystalline metals and non-ballistic by using permalloy, amorphous metal, ceramic perovskites and Heusler alloys that have large resistivity values. It is shown that while the ballistic nanocontacts can present 200% magnetoresistance, the non-ballistic exhibit a non-noticeable value (<2%) at room temperature. Two criteria are given according to theory and in good agreement with experiments to obtain large magnetoresistance values.     

Magnetoresistance of electrochemically produced nickel nanocontacts with quantized conductance

Nickel nanocontacts with quantized conductance have been obtained with the use of the electrochemical method of the formation of atomic-size contacts. The conductance jumps in the absence of the magnetic field are multiple of e ²/h in most experiments. The maximum magnetoresistance reaches 210%. The performed current-voltage investigations make it possible to determine the conditions necessary for forming nanocontacts with giant magnetoresistance, as well as a possible cause of the absence of magnetoresistance in some electrochemically formed nanocontacts.     

Mean-free path effects in magnetoresistance of ferromagnetic nanocontacts

We investigated the mean-free path effects on the magnetoresistance of ferromagnetic nanocontacts. For most combinations of parameters the magnetoresistance monotonously decreases with increasing the contact cross-section. However, for a certain choice of parameters the calculations show non-monotonous behavior of the magnetoresistance in the region in which the diameter of the contact becomes comparable with the mean-free path of electrons. We attribute this effect to different conduction regimes in the vicinity of the nanocontact: ballistic for electrons of one spin projection, and simultaneously diffusive for the other. Furthermore, at certain combinations of spin asymmetries of the bulk mean-free paths in a heterocontact, the magnetoresistance can be almost constant, or may even grow as the contact diameter increases. Thus, our calculations suggest a way to search for combinations of material parameters, for which high magnetoresistances can be achieved not only at the nanometric size of the contact, but also at much larger cross-sections of nanocontacts which can be easier for fabriaction with current technologies. The trial calculations of the magnetoresistance with material parameters close to those for the Mumetal-Ni heterocontacts agree satisfactorily with the available experimental data.     

Inversion of magnetoresistance in magnetic tunnel junctions: effect of pinhole nanocontacts

Inverse magnetoresistance has been observed in magnetic tunnel junctions with pinhole nanocontacts over a broad temperature range. The tunnel magnetoresistance undergoes a change of sign at higher bias and temperature. This phenomenon is attributed to the competition between the spin conserved ballistic transport through the pinhole contact where the transmission probability is close to unity and spin polarized tunneling across the insulating spacer with weak transmittivity.     

Large tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance in (Ga,Mn)As nanoconstrictions

We report a large tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance (TAMR) in (Ga,Mn)As lateral nanoconstrictions. Unlike previously reported tunneling magnetoresistance effects in nanocontacts, the TAMR does not require noncollinear magnetization on either side of the constriction. The nature of the effect is established by a direct comparison of its phenomenology with that of normal anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) measured in the same lateral geometry. The direct link we establish between the TAMR and AMR indicates that TAMR may be observable in other materials showing room temperature AMR and demonstrates that the physics of nanoconstriction magnetoresistive devices can be much richer than previously thought.     

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.     

Spin-flip conductance and magnetoresistance of magnetic nanocontacts

The quantized conductance of nanocontacts with atomic sizes is calculated with allowance made for the conduction-electron spin flip in terms of the quantum scattering theory. The exact solution of the Schrödinger equation describing the electron motion in a piecewise-smooth potential is used as the zeroth-order approximation of the perturbation theory. The probabilities of electron transmission (reflection) through a magnetic domain wall, as well as the spin-conserving and spin-flip conductances of the nanocontact, are calculated. It is demonstrated that the spin-flip conductance imposes the natural limitation on the formally infinite increase in the ballistic magnetoresistance of the nanocontact when its cross-sectional area tends to zero.     

Ballistic and diffuse modes of electron transport in nanocontacts of magnetics

The transition from the ballistic mode of electron transport to the diffuse one has been experimentally observed in Ni nanocontacts of various sizes where the magnetic phase transition has been investigated. It is shown that the voltage U _C required for the Joule heating of the near-contact region to the critical temperature is independent of the contact size only in the diffuse mode. It is demonstrated that a decrease in the electron transport mean free path due to the heating of the near-contact region should be taken into account when determining the electron transport mode in nanocontacts.     

Breaking processes in nickel nanocontacts: a statistical description

In this work we perform a statistical study of favorable atomic configurations of nickel nanocontacts during their stretching at 4 K and 300 K. Nanowire breaking events are simulated using molecular dynamics (MD) where atomic interactions are represented with state-of-the-art embedded atom (EAM) interatomic potentials. The full determination of atomic positions during the contact evolution allows determination of the evolution of the minimum-cross section S_m during stretching. By accumulating many breaking traces, we built minimum cross-section histograms H(S_m). These simulated histograms reveal the presence of preferential geometrical arrangements during the nanocontact breaking, showing that no remarkable differences should appear between the low (4 K) and room temperature (300 K) situations. These results show that differences observed between low and room temperature experimental Ni conductance histograms, are not caused by the different structural evolution and, that therefore, other phenomena are involved. PACS  81.07.Lk; 68.65.-k; 73.63.Rt; 31.15.Qg     

On the morphology of Si/SiO2/Ni nanostructures with swift heavy ion tracks in silicon oxide

Si/SiO₂/Ni nanostructures are fabricated by the irradiation of an oxidized Si surface with swift heavy ions, nanopore etching in the SiO₂ layer, and the electrochemical deposition of nickel in the nanopores with their partial (～50%) or complete filling. Studies of the morphology of the metal in the nanopores shows that the nickel-cluster structure is rather homogeneous and formed by crystallites ～30–50 nm in size. The effects of deposition modes and structure morphology on current transport are analyzed with the use of test temperature dependences of the magnetoresistance. The reproducibility and stability of the magnetoresistance values for the case of homogeneous structure and pore filling with nickel make the Si/SiO₂/Ni system promising for application as the base element for high-sensitivity low-temperature magnetic field sensors.     

Molecular dynamics simulation of the formation of metal nanocontacts

The process of the formation of nanocontacts has been studied by the molecular dynamics methods for a group of metals (Cu, Rh, Pd, Ag, Pt, Au). It has been shown that the disruption forces of nanocontacts substantially depend on the orientation ((100), (110), or (111)) of the contact-surface interface. The possibility of forming linear atomic chains as a result of the disruption of nanocontacts has been analyzed for different orientations of the electrode surfaces. The possibility of forming quasi-one-dimensional nanostructures from the Co/Au alloy, which represent a periodic alternation of gold atoms and cobalt trimers, has been predicted.     

Resonant inversion of tunneling magnetoresistance

Resonant tunneling via localized states in the barrier can invert magnetoresistance in magnetic tunnel junctions. Experiments performed on electrodeposited Ni/NiO/Co nanojunctions of area smaller than 0.01 microm(2) show that both positive and negative values of magnetoresistance are possible. Calculations based on Landauer-Büttiker theory explain this behavior in terms of disorder-driven statistical variations in magnetoresistance with a finite probability of inversion due to resonant tunneling.     

Giant magnetoresistance in an electrochemically synthesized regimented array of nickel quantum dots

Giant magnetoresistance (GMR) due toremotespin dependent scattering of electrons has been observed in an electrochemically synthesized structure consisting of a two-dimensional, quasi-periodic array of nickel dots (diameter ∼100 Å) overlayed with a thin copper layer. Current flows exclusively in the copper layer, but the electrons scatter from the magnetic moments on the remote, underlying nickel quantum dots. Since the scattering cross-section depends on the magnetization of the dots, the resistance of the structure can be altered with a magnetic field which then gives rise to the GMR. The magnetoresistance is about 3% of the zero-field resistance up to a magnetic flux density of 2 tesla at room temperature.     

用镍硅氧化物源横向诱导晶化的多晶硅薄膜

采用磁控溅射法,以镍硅合金为靶,制备了一种适用于金属诱导横向晶化的氧化物镍源——自缓释镍源.该镍源在内部构成和晶化现象上都不同于纯金属镍源.采用该镍源制备低温多晶硅材料,晶化速率不明显依赖于镍源薄膜的厚度,且晶化多晶硅膜内的残余镍量亦可有效降低,可为薄膜晶体管提供宽的工艺窗口.本文对用纯金属镍源所得多晶硅薄膜的晶化率、表面粗糙度、电学特性等与溅射条件的关系进行了研究,并对相应结果进行了讨论. 关键词： 自缓释 金属诱导横向晶化 多晶硅薄膜 低温制备与退火     

用镍硅氧化物源横向诱导晶化的多晶硅薄膜

采用磁控溅射法,以镍硅合金为靶,制备了一种适用于金属诱导横向晶化的氧化物镍源——自缓释镍源.该镍源在内部构成和晶化现象上都不同于纯金属镍源.采用该镍源制备低温多晶硅材料,晶化速率不明显依赖于镍源薄膜的厚度,且晶化多晶硅膜内的残余镍量亦可有效降低,可为薄膜晶体管提供宽的工艺窗口.本文对用纯金属镍源所得多晶硅薄膜的晶化率、表面粗糙度、电学特性等与溅射条件的关系进行了研究,并对相应结果进行了讨论.     

Morphology, magnetic, magnetoresistance and optical properties of Co-Ni-Mo alloys thin films

We present in this paper several results concerning the preparation by means of electrolysis and characterization of Co-Ni-Mo thin films. Co-Ni-Mo thin films with different molybdenum content in the range 0-25 at% Mo were prepared from a complex solution containing ions of Co, Ni and Mo, using galvanostatic control, on aluminum substrates. The effects of applied current density on the morphology, magnetic, magnetoresistance, and optical properties of the electrodeposited Co-Ni-Mo films were investigated. The applied current density significantly influenced the film composition and their magnetic properties. The increase of molybdenum content in Co-Ni films (up to 25 at% Mo) enhances the resistivity, but it reduces the magnetoresistance effect. We report the first observation of magnetoresistance as high as 8% in Co-Ni-Mo thin films.     

A study on electrodeposited Ni x Fe1−x alloy films

Ni _x Fe_1−x (0.22 ≤x ≤ 0.62) alloy films were grown by electrodeposition technique. A shift in diffraction peaks of NiFe and Ni₃Fe was detected with increasing Ni content. The highest positive magnetoresistance ratio was detected as 5% in Ni0.₅₁Fe0.₄₉. Positive and negative anisotropic magnetoresistance were observed in longitudinal and transverse geometries respectively. The highest anisotropic magnetoresistance ratio of 9.8% was also detected in Ni0.₅₁Fe0.₄₉. The angular variation of magnetoresistance was studied. Magnetisation loop curves show that NiFe alloy films have a linear decreasing anisotropy constant with increasing Ni deposit content and show a decreasing behavior of coercivity which indicates soft magnetic property with increasing Ni deposit content     

Giant magnetoresistance and hysteretic effects in hybrid semiconductor/ferromagnet devices

We have investigated ballistic magnetoresistance effects in a two dimensional electron gas subjected to a periodic magnetic field that alternates in sign. The magnetic field was produced by a submicron ferromagnetic grating, made of either nickel or cobalt stripes, which was fabricated at the surface of the heterostructure. We observe giant magnetoresistance effects due to the channelling of electrons along lines of zero magnetic field orientated perpendicular to the current. Our semiclassical model accounts in great detail for all features in the magnetoresistance.