Low-temperature study of the magnetization reversal and magnetic anisotropy of Fe, Ni, and Co nanowires

We present an extensive study of the magnetic reversal mechanism of Fe and Ni nanowires with diameters down to 6nm, i.e. smaller than the domain wall width. The coercive field at 5 K is a factor of 3 lower than the prediction for rotation in unison. We also observe that the activation energy associated with the reversal process is proportional to the cross-section of the wires and nearly independent of the wire length. From the temperature dependence of the coercive field and the magnetic viscosity we can conclude that magnetization reversal takes place via a nucleation of a small magnetic domain, probably at the end of the wire, followed by the movement of the domain wall. For Co wires, we observe a different behavior that is dominated by the competition between the shape anisotropy and the temperature-dependent magnetocrystalline anisotropy. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.