The use of the anisotropic magnetoresistance to study exchange coupling

Summary form only given. A microscopic understanding of the ferromagnetic/antiferromagnetic (F/AF) direct exchange coupling remains elusive. An experimental technique, based on the anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR), to determine both the magnitude of small reversible rotations of the magnetization and the overall orientation of the magnetization has been developed. Three extensions of the original AMR technique include a separation of the exchange anisotropy into rotatable and rigid components, measurements of the time dependence of the exchange anisotropy and its relation to coercivity, and the symmetry of the interfacial exchange coupling-induced anisotropy and its effect on magnetization reversal. A discussion of the techniques and a summary of the results are presented.