Electrical endurance of Co/Ni wire for magnetic domain wall motion device

We investigated electrical endurance of perpendicularly magnetized Co/Ni wires, which are a promising candidate material system for current-induced domain wall motion device. Monitoring the wire resistance while applying dc stress is shown to be a promising way to evaluate the electrical breakdown. An electromigration model describes well the observed time-to-failure as a function of temperature and current density. The dc stress current density which leads to 10-yr lifetime with 50% failure at 150 degrees C was twice as large as the threshold current density for domain wall motion, suggesting that the device with Co/Ni wire is highly durable against electrical stresses. (C) 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.