OSCILLATION OF MAGNETORESISTANCE IN [NI-FE/CU]20/CU/FE MULTILAYERS WITH THICKNESS OF CU SPACER NEIGHBORING FE BUFFER LAYER

In [Ni-Fe (1.0 nm)/Cu(1.0 nm)]20/Cu(t nm)/Fe(5.0 nm) multilayers with giant magnetoresistance effects, oscillations of magnetoresistance ratio and preferred orientation depending on Cu spacer thickness t have been observed. Corresponding to the oscillation of the magnetoresistance ratio, the preferred orientation oscillates between [100] and [111], though the thicknesses of each Ni-Fe and Cu layer in the multilayer are fixed. Both the periods of the oscillations are about 0.6 nm. When the multilayers have stronger [100] and weaker [111] preferred orientations, they show higher magnetoresistance ratios.