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Controlling domain wall nucleation and injection through focussed ion beam irradiation in perpendicularly magnetized nanowires

Published version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

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Authors

Beguivin, A 
Petit, DCMC 
Cowburn, RP 

Abstract

Using Ga+ focussed ion beam irradiation of Ta/Pt/CoFeB/Pt perpendicularly magnetized nanowires, the nucleation and injection fields of domain walls into the nanowires is controlled. The nucleation and injection fields can be varied as a function of dose, however, the range of injection fields is found to be limited by the creation of a step in anisotropy between the irradiated and unirradiated regions. This can be altered by defocussing the beam, which allows the injection fields to be further reduced. The ability to define an arbitrary dose profile allows domain walls to be injected at different fields either side of an asymmetrically irradiated area, which could form the initial stage of a logic device. The effect of the thickness of the magnetic layer and the thickness of a Ta underlayer on the dose required to remove the perpendicular anisotropy is also studied and is seen that for similar Ta underlayers the dose is determined by the thickness of the magnetic layer rather than its anisotropy. This finding is supported by some transport of ions in matter simulations.

Description

Keywords

magnetic anisotropy, nucleation, domain walls, tantalum, nanowires

Journal Title

AIP Advances

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

2158-3226
2158-3226

Volume Title

7

Publisher

AIP Publishing
Sponsorship
European Research Council (247368)
This research was funded by the European Community under the Seventh Framework Program ERC Contract No. 247368: 3SPIN, and by EMRP JRP EXL04 SpinCal. The EMRP is jointly funded by the EMRP participating countries within EURAMET and the EU. AB acknowledges DTA funding from the EPSRC.