GIANT MAGNETORESISTANCE IN SPIN-VALVE MULTILAYERS

Abstract A comprehensive review of giant magnetoresistance in spin-valve sandwiches and multilayers is presented, highlighting the experimental and theoretical results which are of particular interest for the development of applications of these systems, especially in magnetic recording technology. The main points discussed include the physical origin of the giant magnetoresistance, the influence of the thicknesses of the magnetic and nonmagnetic layers, the influence of the interfacial roughness, the angular dependence of the giant magnetoresistance, and the ability to obtain linear R ( H ) characteristics. A summary of the properties of some systems among the most promising for low-field applications is given. Some theoretical results, based on an extension to Camley and Barnas's semi-classical theory, are presented. This simple theoretical approach can serve as a tool in the optimization of the thicknesses or number of periods of spin-valve structures.

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