Abstract
Fe/[Ni81Fe19/Cu]30 multilayers with giant magnetoresistance (GMR) were deposited by the dual ion beam sputtering method, which allows the crystallite orientations and interfacial structures to be controlled by the ion bombardment. In this study, only a few monolayers at interfaces in Ni-Fe/Cu multilayers were exposed to ion bombardment, which causes local interfacial mixing and diffusion. A large MR ratio, low saturation resistivity, and relatively sharp interfacial structure were attained for films deposited by ion bombardment when the acceleration valtage of the bombarding ion source was 160 V. Reducing the residual stress seems to be effective for attaining good magnetoresistive characteristics.
