Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Science 6 August 1999:
Vol. 285. no. 5429, pp. 864 - 867
DOI: 10.1126/science.285.5429.864
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

Reports

Minimum Field Strength in Precessional Magnetization Reversal

C. H. Back, 1* R. Allenspach, 2 W. Weber, 1 S. S. P. Parkin, 3 D. Weller, 3 E. L. Garwin, 4 H. C. Siegmann 1

Ultrafast magnetic field pulses as short as 2 picoseconds are able to reverse the magnetization in thin, in-plane, magnetized cobalt films. The field pulses are applied in the plane of the film, and their direction encompasses all angles with the magnetization. At a right angle to the magnetization, maximum torque is exerted on the spins. In this geometry, a precessional magnetization reversal can be triggered by fields as small as 184 kiloamperes per meter. Applications in future ultrafast magnetic recording schemes can be foreseen.

1 Laboratorium für Festkörperphysik, ETH Zürich, CH-8093 Zürich, Switzerland.
2 IBM Research Division, Zurich Research Laboratory, CH-8803 Rüschlikon, Switzerland.
3 IBM Research Division, Almaden Research Center, 650 Harry Road, San Jose, CA 95120, USA.
4 Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
*   To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: back{at}solid.phys.ethz.ch

Read the Full Text


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Magnetization Precession by Hot Spin Injection.
W. Weber, S. Riesen, and H. C. Siegmann (2001)
Science 291, 1015-1018
   Abstract »    Full Text »
Imaging Precessional Motion of the Magnetization Vector.
Y. Acremann, C. H. Back, M. Buess, O. Portmann, A. Vaterlaus, D. Pescia, and H. Melchior (2000)
Science 290, 492-495
   Abstract »    Full Text »
Monodisperse FePt Nanoparticles and Ferromagnetic FePt Nanocrystal Superlattices.
S. Sun, C. B. Murray, D. Weller, L. Folks, and A. Moser (2000)
Science 287, 1989-1992
   Abstract »    Full Text »


To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)