As a key effect in
spintronic devices, exchange bias has attracted
tremendous attention. Various approaches have been attempted for optimizing
this effect, among which the application of strain in flexible exchange-biased
systems is promising, but little significant improvement has been
reported. Here, we demonstrate encouraging progress in this field.
With a pure mechanical compressive strain of −6.26‰
applied to the flexible polyimide (PI) substrate, distinct enhancement
of ∼900% in the bias field (from 20 to 200 Oe) is achieved
for the exchange-biased (FeCo/IrMn)3/Ta multilayers grown
on top of a flexible PI substrate, accompanied by a notable decrease
in the Gilbert damping parameter from 0.02 to 0.008, signifying an
improved exchange bias effect as well as a potentially reduced switching
current density. The underlying mechanism is investigated by a systematic
ferromagnetic resonance study, suggesting that the angle between the
unidirectional and uniaxial magnetic easy axes plays an important
role, which may be controlled by adjusting the layer number. This
work offers an efficient strategy for tuning the exchange bias effect
via applying appropriate mechanical strain on a multiperiodic exchange
bias multilayered system, opening up an avenue for tailoring the magnetic
properties of flexible spintronic devices.