Heaven’s Light is Our Guide
Rajshahi University of Engineering & Technology
Department of Physics
Giant Magnetoresistance
(GMR)
Presented by Md. Faruk Hossain
Master of Philosophy (M. Phil.) Student
Department of Physics
Rajshahi University of Engineering & Technology
Rajshahi-6204, Bangladesh
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Outline
Background Why is it useful?
History of GMR Application of GMR
What is GMR? Hard Drives
Types of GMR GMR’s effect on hard
Basic Mechanism drive industry
Science of GMR Advantages
Discovery of GMR Disadvantages
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Background
Ordinary magnetoresistance (OMR)
discovered in 1856 by Lord Kelvin
Resistance of iron changes up to 5%
with external magnetic field
Little progress in MR effect through
1980
Lord Kelvin
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History of GMR
Experimentally Driven in
between 1986-1989
Theoretically Modeled in 1989
IT Applications into 1990’s
First Commerical Hard-Disks
with GMR Sensors (IBM) in 1998
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What is GMR?
Way to control electrical
resistance at the nanoscale
using magnetic field
Nonmagnetic metal
sandwiched between
magnetic layers
Apply magnetic field
→ parallel magnetization Fundamentals of GMR
→ decreased resistance
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Types of GMR
Parallel Current GMR
Current runs parallel between the ferromagnetic layers
Most commonly used in magnetic read heads
Has shown 200% resistance difference between zero
point and antiparallel states
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Types of GMR
Perpendicular Current GMR
Easier to understand theoretically, think of one FM
layer as spin polarizer and other as detector
Has shown 70% resistance difference between zero
point and antiparallel states
Basis for Tunneling Magneto Resistance
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Types of GMR
Two possible geometries film fabrication
Small thicknesses Small diameter
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Basic Mechanism
The magnetization state controls to the electric current flow
Parallel alignment Antiparallel alignment
low resistive high resistive
RP = low RAP = high
IP = high IAP = low
- Resistance changes up to 80% at RT
- Widely employed in HDD read-heads and sensors
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Basic Mechanism
Apply Newton’s third law “Actio = Reactio”:
The polarity of the electric current flow controls the magnetization state
Negative current Positive current
parallel alignment Antiparallel alignment
Electron flux
parallel antiparallel
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Basic Mechanism
Electron spin & atom magnetic
moments in parallel → weak
scattering
Antiparallel → strong scattering
More scattering = higher
electrical resistance
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Science of GMR
Parallel magnetization
Up-spin electrons experience
small resistance, down-spin
electrons experience large
resistance.
Total resistance is
2 R R
R para
R R
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Science of GMR
Antiparallel magnetization
Both electron spins experience
small resistance in one layer
and large resistance in the
other.
Total resistance is
Rantpara 12 ( R R )
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Science of GMR
Difference in resistance is given by:
2
1 ( R R )
Hence the GMR is given by:
R Rantipara R para
2 ( R R )
2
1 ( R R )
GMR R / Rpara
4 R R
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Discovery of GMR
Discovered by independently by Professor Albert Fert of
Université Paris-Sud in France and Professor Peter Grünberg of
Forschungszentrum in Jülich, Germany.
Both groups submitted papers to Physical Review in the summer of
1988.
Awarded Nobel Prize jointly in Physics in 2007
“Does the electrical
resistance depend
on the magnetization
alignment?”
Albert Fert Peter Grünberg
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Discovery of GMR
Fert
60-bilayered Fe-Cr structure
at 4.2 K
Nearly 50% drop in resistance
observed!!
(FeCr)n, n=60
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Discovery of GMR
Grünberg
Fe-Cr-Fe trilayer at room
temperature
1.5% drop in resistance
reported
Fe/Cr/Fe trilayer
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GMR – Why is it useful?
Discovery and application of the GMR phenomenon is
responsible for the ubiquitous availability of economical,
high density information storage in our society.
Compact 160 GB MP3 players and 1 TB hard drives, now
widely available, owe their existence to GMR and
subsequent related advances.
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Applications
⁕ Data storage industry
⁕ Automotive sensors
⁕ Magnetic field sensors
⁕ Read heads
⁕ Solid-state compasses
⁕ Non-volatile magnetic memories
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Hard Drives
Information encoded in
magnetic domains
Spin up/down corresponds
to logic levels 0 and 1
Read heads sense magnetic
fields: relay information as
electrical signals
Hard Disk Drive (HDD)
Before GMR, used
induction coils and OMR
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GMR’s effect on hard drive industry
First GMR hard drive deployed:
Deskstar 16 GP by IBM
Date: 1997
Storage: 16.8 GB
2.7 billion bits per square inch.
largest hard drive in 2007:
Deskstar 7K1000 by Hitachi
Date: 2007
Storage: 1 TB
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Advantages
Small physical Size
Small weight
Large signal level
High sensitivity
High temperature stability
Low power consumption
The GMR sensors are very accurate
Faster devices
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Disadvantages
Interfernce of fields with nearest elements.
Controlling spin for long distances
Control of spin in silicon is difficult
Difficult to INJECT and MEASURE spin
Complex manufacturing
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References
1. Day C. Physics Today. 2007; 60(12):12.
2. Tsymbal EY, Pettifor DG. In Solid state physics. 2001; 56:113-
237.
3. Binasch G, Grünberg P, Saurenbach F, Zinn W. Physical review B.
1989; 39(7):4828.
4. Baibich MN, Broto JM, Fert A, Van Dau FN, Petroff F, Etienne P,
Creuzet G, Friederich A, Chazelas J. Physical review letters.
1988 ;61(21):2472.
5. Xiao JQ, Jiang JS, Chien CL. Physical Review Letters. 1992;
68(25):3749.
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