The magnetoresistive (MR) switching behavior of small permalloy/silicon monoxide/permalloy sandwich elements is investigated. A comparison with single layer elements shows that the best MR-switching results are found for the sandwich structures with the smallest dimensions (10×100 μm). A theoretical calculation based on the magnetostatic coupling between the two permalloy layers of the sandwich and on inhomogeneous demagnetizing fields shows good agreement with the experimental results. The formation of magnetic domain configurations other than those found in small single layer elements is illustrated using a ferrofluid observation technique.
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