Description:
A scanning probe microscope which combines probe contacts for the supply of current with a magnetic force microscope (MFM) for fully automated imaging of electrically active, patterned sensor-like devices across a wafer was developed. This was used for magnetoresistive sensitivity mapping (MSM) of giant magnetoresistive sensors with different stabilization schemes. Multiple measurements of sensors showed that the MSM images were very repeatable. The complex image patterns varied significantly from sensor to sensor across a wafer. With MFM tips magnetized perpendicular to the ferromagnetic films in the sensor, MSM signals at the top and bottom of the sensor were significantly more intense than signals at the sensor interior. Results from micromagnetic calculations were found to be consistent with the experimental observations.