Stability of stripe magnetic domain in magnetic multilayers: Prediction and observation

Abstract

We present an analytical theory of the magnetic domain configuration in magnetic multilayers. The theory predicts a sharp transition from a large-areal domain pattern to a striped domain configuration as a function of increasing magnetic layer thickness. This transition was verified experimentally by direct magnetic domain observations in Co/Pd multilayers. This transition results from a competition between the magnetostatic energy and the exchange and anisotropy energies.