Remarkable difference in reversal mechanism between identically patterned thin film Co/Pt elements of 70 nm diameter in an array

Abstract

We show that the switching fields of individual islands have different dependencies on the applied field angle. The switching fields of weak islands for perpendicular fields appear to be dominated by domain wall movement, whereas the strong islands show a mechanism closer to coherent-rotation. These angular dependent switching fields are well described by two parameters using a modified Kondorsky model