Magnetoresistive behavior and magnetization reversal of NiFe/Cu/CoFe/IrMn spin valve GMRs in nanoscale

Abstract

The magnetoresistance behavior and the magnetization reversal mode of NiFe/Cu/CoFe/IrMn spin valve giant magnetoresistance (SV-GMR) in nanoscale were investigated experimentally and theoretically by nanosized magnetic simulation methods. Based on the Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert equation, a model with a special gridding was proposed to calculate the giant magnetoresistance ratio (MR) and investigate the magnetization reversal mode. The relationship between MR and the external magnetic field was obtained and analyzed. Studies into the variation of the magnetization distribution reveal that the magnetization reversal mode, that is, the jump variation mode for NiFe/Cu/CoFe/IrMn, depends greatly on the antiferromagnetic coupling behavior between the pinned layer and the antiferromagnetic layer. It is also found that the switching field is almost linear with the exchange coefficient.

Keywords

giant magnetoresistance (GMR) / spin valves / nanoscale / magnetization reversal

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