Dynamic Notch Pinning Fields for Domain Walls in Ferromagnetic Nanowires

Artificial defects such as notches and antinotches are often attached to magnetic nanowires to serve as trapping (pinning) sites for domain walls. The magnetic field necessary to release (depin) the trapped domain wall from the notch depends on the type, geometric shape, and dimensions of the defect but is typically quite large. Conversely we show here that for some notches and antinotches there exists a much smaller driving field for which a moving domain wall will travel past the defect without becoming trapped. This dynamic pinning field also depends on the type, geometric shape and defect dimensions. Micromagnetic simulation is used to investigate both the static and dynamic pinning fields and their relation to the topologic structure of the domain wall

Injecting, Controlling, and Storing Magnetic Domain Walls in Ferromagnetic Nanowires

Domain walls in ferromagnetic nanowires are important for proposed devices in recording, logic, and sensing. The realization of such devices depends in part on the ability to quickly and accurately control the domain wall from creation until placement. Using micromagnetic computer simulation we demonstrate how a combination of externally applied magnetic fields is used to quickly inject, move, and accurately place multiple domain walls within a single wire for potential recording and logical operations. The use of a magnetic field component applied perpendicular to the principle domain wall driving field is found to be critical for increased speed and reliability. The effects of the transverse field on the injection and trapping of the domain wall will be shown to be of particular importance

Controlling Individual Domain Walls in Ferromagnetic Nanowires for Memory and Sensor Applications

Controlled motion of 180o and 360o domain walls along planar nanowires is presented. Standard Landau – Lifshitz micromagnetic modeling has been used to simulate the response of the domain walls to the application of an external magnetic field. A 180o wall is quickly and easily moved with the application of an applied. field along the axis of the wire but a 360odomain wall is stationary in the same case. An oscillatory applied field can be used to continually move the wall along the wires axis. The speed at which the 360o domain wall is found to be several times slower than a similar 180o domain wall and is limited by interaction between the magnetization of the domain wall and the external field

Open Letter to The American Association for the Advancement of Science

This is an open letter concerning the recent launch of the new open access journal, Science Advances. In addition to the welcome diversification in journal choices for authors looking for open access venues, there are many positive aspects of Science Advances: its broad STEM scope, its interest in cross-disciplinary research, and the offering of fee waivers. While we welcome the commitment of the Association to open access, we are also deeply concerned with the specific approach. Herein, we outline a number of suggestions that are in line with both the current direction that scholarly publishing is taking and the needs expressed by the open access community, which this journal aims to serve