Spin-diffusion lengths in metals and alloys, and spin-flipping at metal/metal interfaces: an experimentalist’s critical review

In magnetoresistive (MR) studies of magnetic multilayers composed of combinations of ferromagnetic (F) and non-magnetic (N) metals, the magnetic moment (or related 'spin') of each conduction electron plays a crucial role, supplementary to that of its charge. While initial analyses of MR in such multilayers assumed that the direction of the spin of each electron stayed fixed as the electron transited the multilayer, we now know that this is true only in a certain limit. Generally, the spins 'flip' in a distance characteristic of the metal, its purity, and the temperature. They can also flip at F/N or N1/N2 interfaces. In this review we describe how to measure the lengths over which electron moments flip in pure metals and alloys, and the probability of spin-flipping at metallic interfaces. Spin-flipping within metals is described by a spin-diffusion length, lM (sf), where the metal M = F or N. Spin-diffusion lengths are the characteristic lengths in the current-perpendicular-to-plane (CPP) and lateral non-local (LNL) geometries that we focus upon in this review. In certain simple cases, lN (sf) sets the distance over which the CPP-MR and LNL-MR decrease as the N-layer thickness (CPP-MR) or N-film length (LNL) increases, and lF (sf) does the same for increase of the CPP-MR with increasing F-layer thickness. Spin-flipping at M1/M2 interfaces can be described by a parameter, delta (M1/M2), which determines the spin-flipping probability, P = 1 - exp (-delta). Increasing delta (M1/M2) usually decreases the MR. We list measured values of these parameters and discuss the limitations on their determinations.