Electric field controlled manipulation of the magnetization in Ni/BaTiO3 hybrid structures

The manipulation of the ferromagnetic magnetization via electric fields is investigated in Ni/BaTiO3 hybrid structures. The application of an electric field to the ferroelectric BaTiO3 induces elastic strain. In the Ni/BaTiO3 hybrids, this strain is transferred into the ferromagnetic Ni layer, affecting its magnetization due to inverse magnetostriction. Two approaches to electrically alter the Ni magnetization are investigated. One approach exploits the strain-induced change of the nickel magnetic coercivity, and allows for both reversible and irreversible magnetization control. The other is based on irreversible ferroelectric domain effects in BaTiO3, and yields two different electro-remanent magnetization states.