Effect of NiAl underlayer and spacer on magnetoresistance of current-perpendicular-to-plane spin valves using Co2Mn(Ga 0.5Sn0.5) Heusler alloy

N. Hase, T. M. Nakatani, S. Kasai, Y. K. Takahashi, T. Furubayashi, K. Hono

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13 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

We investigated the effect of a NiAl underlayer and spacer on magnetoresistive (MR) properties in current-perpendicular-to-plane spin valves (CPP-SVs) using Co2Mn(Ga0.5Sn0.5) (CMGS) Heusler alloy ferromagnetic layers. The usage of a NiAl underlayer allowed a high temperature annealing for the L21 ordering of the bottom CMGS layer, giving rise to a MR ratio of 10.2% at room temperature. We found that the usage of a NiAl spacer layer also improved the tolerance of the multilayer structure against thermal delamination, which allowed annealing to induce the L21 structure in both the bottom and top CMGS layers. However, the short spin diffusion length of NiAl resulted in a lower MR ratio compared to that obtained using a Ag spacer. Transmission electron microscopy of the multilayer structure of CPP-SVs showed that the atomically flat layered structure was maintained after the annealing.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)440-444
Number of pages5
JournalJournal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials
Volume324
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2012 Feb

Keywords

  • CPP-GMR
  • Giant magnetoresistance
  • Heusler alloy
  • Spin valve

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