MOKE and AMR investigations on exchange bias field strength and direction in ferromagnet/antiferromagnet systems

Summary form only given. Exchange bias is widely used for fixing a magnetic soft layer within a GMR or TMR spin valve system. However there is a big lack of knowledge concerning the microscopic description and the determination of local properties like the distribution of exchange bias field strength H/sub eb/ and direction responsible for the reversal mechanism, and asymmetry of the reversal. In this paper the interaction at the ferromagnet/ antiferromagnet interface was studied in detail by MOKE and AMR investigations.