Current-induced magnetic domain wall motion, induced by transfer of spin transfer effect due to exchange interaction, is expected to be useful for next generation high-density storages. Here we showed that efficient domain wall manipulation can be achieved by the introduction of Rashba spin-orbit interaction, which induces spin precession of conduction electron and acts as an effective magnetic field. Its effect on domain wall motion depends on the wall configuration. We found that the effect is significant for Bloch wall with the hard axis along the current, since the effective field works as $\beta$ or fieldlike term and removes the threshold current if in extrinsic pinning is absent. For Néel wall and Bloch wall with easy axis perpendicular to Rashba plane, the effective field induces a step motion of wall corresponding to a rotation of wall plane by the angle of approximately $\pi$ at current lower than intrinsic threshold. Rashba interaction would therefore be useful to assist efficient motion of domain walls at low current.

• Received 1 April 2008

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.77.214429