SUBMICRON MAGNETIC STRUCTURES and MAGNETOTRANSPORT DEVICES

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Project objective

The participants are leading experts in the field of thin and ultrathin There is an urgent need for a coordinated multi-disciplinary European film magnetism and includes major industrial laboratories in Europe research activity in the rapidly growing field of magnetic mesoscopic involved in this field. The availability of advanced lithography and highly structures. The global aims of our Network are (i) to study, simulate and manipulate the properties of submicron/nanoscale magnetic structures, (ii) sophisticated magnetic measurement techniques will allow researchers and students to gain expertise in the enabling techniques of mesoscopic to provide enabling technologies for applications in information storage magnetic film structures while giving direct links to leading companies systems, sensing devices and magnetoelectronics and (iii) to provide already engaged in developing magnetoelectronic devices and magnetic scientists and technologists trained to exploit the new opportunities. storage media. The network thus provides a unique training opportunity in Specifically we will use lithography techniques to prepare small (#100nm) elements. We will develop methods for preparing microcontacts which allow the newly emerging field of magnetoelectronics which has immense scientific and technological potential. Exchanges and visits for training research the magnetisation to be probed at a particular position using magnetotransport and we will use small current contacts to apply local fiels; spin staff in industrial laboratories and industrial researchers in academic laboratories are planned. Training days, summer schools and workshops will sensitive imaging techniques down to the atomic scale and advanced magnetometric probes will be used to study the response to applied fields provide a focus for training of all researchers. A total of at least 32 man and the results will be compared with micromagnetic computations of the months will be given to the training of 8 post doctoral researchers. energetics and dynamic properties. The emphasis is on the spin structures which can be controlled and manipulated rather than on the small elements per se. Relevance: These studies will lead to a new understanding of the performance of MR heads, memory elements and miniature sensors and to a generic understanding of how properties change upon reducing size in the submicron to nm scale range and with the defects introduced by the deposition process or artificially (e.g. nanofabricated steps). The results are relevant to future high density storage media, including perpendicular media and quantum disc type media, magnetic random access memories and

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

• University of Cambridge · CambridgeCoordinatorUnited Kingdom
• AACHEN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY · AACHENGermany
• CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE · PARISFrance
• Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas eComputadores · LisboaPortugal
• NEDERLANDSE PHILIPS BEDRIJVEN BV · EINDHOVENNetherlands
• Thomson-CSF · GOMETZ LA VILLEFrance
• UNIVERSITE DE PARIS-SUD XI · ORSAYFrance
• UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW · GLASGOWUnited Kingdom

Links

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