Electrical detection of magnetic domain walls by inverse and direct spin Hall effect

Domain wall (DW) detection is a prerequisite to perform current-induced DW motion. In this letter, we demonstrate a detection method, based on the ability for aferromagneticnanowire, in which a DW is pinned, to inject or detect a pure spincurrent. The device consists of such aferromagneticnanowire in contact with an orthogonal spin Hall effect (SHE)nanowire. When acurrent flows along theferromagneticnanowire, and provided a DW is pinned, the pure spincurrent is transformed into a transverse voltage byinverse spin Hall effect (ISHE). In the reciprocal configuration, the pure spincurrent created by the direct SHE, generates a transverse voltage along theferromagneticwire. Finite element method(FEM) simulations allow estimating the Pt spin Hall angle (SHA) (7.5  ± 0.5%). This technique provides an electrical way to study the DW motion, a device akin to theferromagnetic/spin Hall effect bilayers typically used for spin-orbit torques experiments.

Source: Applied Physics Letters - November 7, 2016 Category: Physics Authors: V. T. Pham, G. Zahnd, A. Marty, W. Savero Torres, M. Jamet, P. No ël, L. Vila and J. P. Attané Source Type: research