Reflection of electrons from a domain wall in magnetic nanojunctions

TL;DR

This paper provides a theoretical analysis of electron reflection and magnetoresistance in ferromagnetic nanojunctions with domain walls, highlighting significant resistance effects and spin polarization phenomena.

Contribution

It introduces a scattering state-based model to quantify electron reflection, resistance, and spin effects in domain walls, aligning with recent experimental findings.

Findings

Large magnetoresistance due to strong electron reflection

Significant spin polarization induced by the domain wall

Qualitative agreement with experimental observations

Abstract

Electronic transport through thin and laterally constrained domain walls in ferromagnetic nanojunctions is analyzed theoretically. The description is formulated in the basis of scattering states. The resistance of the domain wall is calculated in the regime of strong electron reflection from the wall. It is shown that the corresponding magnetoresistance can be large, which is in a qualitative agreement with recent experimental observations. We also calculate the spin current flowing through the wall and the spin polarization of electron gas due to reflections from the domain wall.