Sang-Min Park, Mark P. Stoykovich, et al.
Advanced Materials
We report an asymmetry of magnetic disorder in exchange-biased IrMn(t IrMn=5-20 nm)/CoFe(50 nm) films observed by means of a Kerr microscope, capable of direct domain observation. From the correlation between the magnetization half-reversal time and applied magnetic field, we find that the magnetization switching in all the films occurs via a thermally activated reversal mechanism for both branches of hysteresis loops. Surprisingly, in the forward branch reversal where the applied magnetic field is antiparallel to the direction of exchange-bias field, degree of magnetic disorder decreases as exchange-bias field increases, which is definitely contrasted with the case of backward branch reversal. This result is likely ascribed to the fact that the local values of exchange-bias field and coercive field are oppositely fluctuating with each other in the film. © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Sang-Min Park, Mark P. Stoykovich, et al.
Advanced Materials
R. Ghez, J.S. Lew
Journal of Crystal Growth
Kafai Lai, Alan E. Rosenbluth, et al.
SPIE Advanced Lithography 2007
I.K. Pour, D.J. Krajnovich, et al.
SPIE Optical Materials for High Average Power Lasers 1992