title: Disorder-induced microscopic magnetic memory.
abstract: Using coherent x-ray speckle metrology, we have measured the influence of disorder on major loop return point memory (RPM) and complementary point memory (CPM) for a series of perpendicular anisotropy Co/Pt multilayer films. In the low disorder limit, the domain structures show no memory with field cycling--no RPM and no CPM. With increasing disorder, we observe the onset and the saturation of both the RPM and the CPM. These results provide the first direct ensemble-sensitive experimental study of the effects of varying disorder on microscopic magnetic memory and are compared against the predictions of existing theories.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Pierce
authors.forename: C R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Buechler
authors.forename: L B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Sorensen
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Turner
authors.forename: S D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Kevan
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Jagla
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Deutsch
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mai
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Narayan
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Davies
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: J Hunter
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Dunn
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Chesnel
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Kortright
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Hellwig
authors.forename: E E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Fullerton