MAGNETORESISTIVE MEASUREMENTS OF SPUTTERED NI CO MULTILAYERS/

Ni/Co multilayer thin films of even Ni and Co individual laver thickne ss have been sputter-deposited onto glass substrates. The anisotropic magnetoresistance of the multilayers is seen to vary with bilayer peri odicity exhibiting a maximum of 3.5% at 2.4 nm. Using a square four-po int probe arrangement recently reported in the literature much larger apparent values of magnetoresistance of 1140% with a FWHM of 30 Oe are obtained. We present an analysis of this 'extraordinary' effect showi ng that the high magnetoresistance values obtained are not intrinsic t o the material and that the measurement method has no fundamental adva ntage over the more commonly used in-line technique. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V. All right reserved.