HIGH-QUALITY NI-FE CU MULTILAYER FILMS WITH ANTIFERROMAGNETIC COUPLING/

We report structural and magnetic properties of Ni83Fe17/Cu multilayer films with various buffer layer and sublayer thicknesses of copper d( Cu) and Permalloy d(Py) deposited by face-to-face sputtering. The foll owing features prove a good quality of our films: a well-layered struc ture, complete antiferromagnetic coupling with a low coupling strength (2 x 10(-5) J/m(2) for d(Cu) = 1 nm and 10(-6) J/m(2) for d(Cu) = 2.1 nm) and a low coercive field which make them attractive for possible applications as giant magnetoresistance sensors.