The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 06, 2003
Filed:
Jan. 10, 2000
Hideo Fujiwara, Tuscaloosa, AL (US);
Gary J. Mankey, Tuscaloosa, AL (US);
The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL (US);
Abstract
A spin-valve device of a CPP structure which has a high resistance, and which generates a high output signal with low current. The CPP spin-valve device including a spin-valve element having a substrate and a layered structure formed on the substrate. The layered structure includes a first thin film layer of ferromagnetic material, a second thin film layer of ferromagnetic material, and a thin non-magnetic layer structure separating the first and second layers. One of the first and second thin film layers is defined as a free layer and the other layer is defined as a pinned layer, where the free layer has a direction of magnetization that is easier to change than a direction of magnetization of the pinned layer by application of a magnetic field. The non-magnetic layer structure includes a conducting part and insulating part, with the conduction part having an area that is smaller than an area of the free layer. The device further includes a device for producing a current flow through the spin-valve element and a field sensor configured to sense variations in resistance of the spin-valve element due to a difference in rotation of the magnetizations in the free layer and the pinned layer caused by an applied magnetic field.