Direct Observation of Current-Induced Motion of a 3D Vortex Domain Wall in Cylindrical Nanowires

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2017 May 24;9(20):16741-16744. doi: 10.1021/acsami.7b03404. Epub 2017 May 15.

Abstract

The current-induced dynamics of 3D magnetic vortex domain walls in cylindrical Co/Ni nanowires are revealed experimentally using Lorentz microscopy and theoretically using micromagnetic simulations. We demonstrate that a spin-polarized electric current can control the reversible motion of 3D vortex domain walls, which travel with a velocity of a few hundred meters per second. This finding is a key step in establishing fast, high-density memory devices based on vertical arrays of cylindrical magnetic nanowires.

Keywords: 3D memory; assembled nanostructures; current-driven domain wall motion; in situ electron microscopy; nanowires.