Exchange bias related coercivity enhancement as a characterization tool

摘要

We present a phenomenological approach to access the- coercivity enhancement which appears in all exchange bias systems. The coercivity enhancement is correlated to the structural properties of the thin film system. We find that the coercivity reacts sensitively to structural changes as subtle as a sub-monolayer interface oxidation of a ferromagnetic layer. We apply our approach to demonstrate the role of surface oxidation in a [Pt/Co]_3 layer stack. The intriguing occurrence of antiferromagnetic interlayer coupling in these systems is discussed to be strongly related to the cover layer properties.