Optimized Voltage-Induced Control of Magnetic Domain-Wall Propagation in Hybrid Piezoelectric/Magnetostrictive Devices

• Published in: Actuators Vol. 10; no. 6; p. 134
• Main Authors: Consolo, Giancarlo, Valenti, Giovanna
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 01.06.2021
• Subjects: Anisotropy; Approximation; cubic magnetostrictive materials; domain wall propagation; Domain walls; Electric field strength; Electric fields; Electric potential; Electrodes; Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert equation; Magnetic domains; Magnetic fields; magnetoelastic effects; Magnetostriction; Piezoelectric actuators; piezoelectric ceramics; Propagation; Voltage
• ISSN: 2076-0825; 2076-0825
• DOI: 10.3390/act10060134

A theory of voltage-induced control of magnetic domain walls propagating along the major axis of a magnetostrictive nanostrip, tightly coupled with a ceramic piezoelectric, is developed in the framework of the Landau–Lifshitz–Gilbert equation. It is assumed that the strains undergone by the piezoelectric actuator, subject to an electric field generated by a dc bias voltage applied through a couple of lateral electrodes, are fully transferred to the magnetostrictive layer. Taking into account these piezo-induced strains and considering a magnetostrictive linear elastic material belonging to the cubic crystal class, the magnetoelastic field is analytically determined. Therefore, by using the classical traveling-wave formalism, the explicit expressions of the most important features characterizing the two dynamical regimes of domain-wall propagation have been deduced, and their dependence on the electric field strength has been highlighted. Moreover, some strategies to optimize such a voltage-induced control, based on the choice of the ceramic piezoelectric material and the orientation of dielectric poling and electric field with respect to the reference axes, have been proposed.