Suppression of exchange bias by ion irradiation

The exchange bias effect in ferromagnetic/antiferromagnetic sandwich structures is generally believed to be sensitive on the interface exchange interaction, the magnetization, and the thickness of the ferromagnetic layer. Also the interface structure plays a crucial role. We show that, by irradiating samples with He ions, we can manipulate the exchange bias field in a controlled manner. Depending on the dose (10(14)-10(17) ions/cm(2)) and the acceleration voltage (10-35 kV) of the ions, the shift of the hysteresis can be reduced or even fully suppressed. Potential applications of this effect for magnetic patterning on the nanoscale will be discussed. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(00)03608-1].