Magnetic nanoelements for magnetoelectronics made by focused-ion-beam milling

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Abstract
Focused-ion-beam(FIB)milling has been used to structure magnetic nanoelements from 5 nm thick films of permalloy. We have used focused 30-keV Ga + ions to define small arrays (6 μ m ×6 μ m ) of wires, circles, and elongated hexagons in the size range 100–500 nm. High-sensitivity magneto-optical measurements combined with atomic force microscopy show that very high quality magnetic nanostructures can be fabricated by FIBmilling even in thin films of soft magnetic materials. This finding could be significant for the future commercialization of certain aspects of magnetic nanotechnology and magnetoelectronics.