Title	2
	Giant Magnetoresistance (GMR) Sensors	5
	Contents	11
	Spintronic Phenomena: Giant Magnetoresistance, Tunnel Magnetoresistance and Spin Transfer Torque	13
	1 Giant Magnetoresistance	15
	1.1 Short History of GMR	15
	1.2 Spin Dependent Transport in Ferromagnetic Transition Metals	17
	1.3 Current in Plane GMR	18
	1.4 Current Perpendicular to Plane GMR	20
	2 Tunnel Magnetoresistance	23
	2.1 Amorphous Magnetic Tunnel Junctions	23
	2.2 TMR in Crystalline Tunnel Junctions	26
	3 Angular Dependence of Transport and Spin Transfer Torque	28
	3.1 Transport for Non-collinear Magnetizations Configuration	28
	3.2 Spin Transfer Torque	29
	4 Conclusion	34
	References	35
	Microfabrication Techniques	43
	1 Introduction	43
	2 Deposition Techniques	44
	2.1 Physical Vapor Deposition	45
	2.2 Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD)	47
	2.3 Electrodeposition	48
	3 Patterning	49
	3.1 Photolithography	50
	3.2 Pattern Transfer Techniques	52
	4 Conclusions	55
	References	55
	Noise in GMR and TMR Sensors	58
	1 Noise Formalism	58
	1.1 Fluctuations, Average and Distribution	59
	1.2 Correlations	60
	1.3 Frequency Space and Spectral Density	61
	1.4 Sensitivity, Signal to Noise Ratio and Detectivity	63
	2 The Different Sources of Noise	64
	2.1 Separation of Magnetic and Non Magnetic Noise	64
	2.2 Frequency Independent Noise (Thermal or Johnson-Nyquist Noise), Shot Noise	64
	2.3 Low Frequency Noise	65
	2.4 High Frequency Noise and Ferromagnetic Resonance	68
	2.5 External Noise	68
	3 Electronics and Noise Measurements	68
	3.1 Electronics Design	69
	3.2 Additional Remarks and Alternatives	73
	4 Noise in Magnetoresistive Sensors	74
	4.1 Noise in GMR Devices	74
	4.2 Noise in Metallic Magnetic Tunnel Junctions	77
	4.3 Noise in Oxide Tunnel Junctions	79
	5 Conclusion and Perspectives	79
	References	80
	Resistive Sensor Interfacing	82
	1 Sensors and Electronics	82
	2 The Main Parameters of Sensor Electronic Interfaces	87
	3 Small Range Resistive Sensor Interfaces	89
	4 Wide Range Resistive Sensor Interfaces	96
	5 Integrated Microsystems	105
	References	110
	GMR Based Sensors for IC Current Monitoring	114
	1 Introduction	114
	2 Fundamentals	116
	2.1 Sensing Structures	116
	2.2 Sensing Mechanism	118
	2.3 Sensing Configurations	120
	3 Particular Issues in IC Current Monitoring	122
	3.1 Low Signal Level Detection	122
	3.2 Bandwidth	125
	3.3 Joule Heating	126
	4 Current Measurement at the IC Level	128
	4.1 Background on Medium Current Applications	129
	4.2 Electric Current Monitoring at the IC Level	129
	4.3 Power Consumption in ICs	131
	4.4 Analogue Isolators	132
	4.5 Current-to-Time (I-to-t) Converters	133
	5 Monolithic Integration: Trends and Challenges	136
	5.1 CMOS 0.35m	137
	5.2 CMOS 2.5m	138
	6 Conclusions	139
	GMR Sensors in Automotive Applications	143
	1 Introduction	143
	2 GMR Angle Sensing Applications	144
	2.1 BLDC Rotor Position Measurement	146
	2.2 Steering Angle Application	151
	2.3 Angle Error Calibration	153
	3 GMR Speed Sensing Applications	157
	3.1 Crankshaft Speed and Position Measurement	157
	3.2 Wheel Speed Measurement for ABS and ESC Systems	162
	3.3 Magnetic Back Bias of GMR Sensors	163
	4 Summary	166
	References	166
	Compass Applications Using Giant Magnetoresistance Sensors (GMR)	167
	1 Introduction	167
	2 The Earth's Magnetic Field	170
	3 Compass Concepts	172
	4 GMR Sensor Behavior	175
	5 Commercial GMR Compasses	183
	6 Discussion	186
	7 Conclusions	188
	References	188
	Commercial Off-The-Shelf GMR Based Sensor on Board Optos Picosatellite	191
	1 Introduction – A Flight Opportunity	191
	2 Selection of an Appropriate Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) GMR Sensor	194
	3 Biasing Mechanism	205
	4 Qualification of the Sensor	208
	5 Design of the Device	213
	6 Performance	214
	7 Summary and Conclusions	216
	References	218
	High-Spatial Resolution Giant Magnetoresistive Sensors – Part I: Application in Non-Destructive Evaluation	221
	1 Introduction	221
	2 ECT Technique Based Application	222
	2.1 Introduction	222
	2.2 PCB Inspection Based on ECT Technique	224
	2.3 ECT Probe Characteristics and Inspection System	232
	2.4 High-Density PCB Inspection	241
	3 Conclusions	248
	References	249
	High-Spatial Resolution Giant Magnetoresistive Sensors – Part II: Application in Biomedicine	252
	1 Introduction	252
	2 Estimation of Magnetic Fluid Density Inside Tumors	252
	2.1 Introduction	252
	2.2 Analytical Estimation of Magnetic Fluid Parameters	255
	2.3 GMR Needle Probe	260
	2.4 Estimation of Magnetic Fluid Weight Density Using the GMR Needle Probe	263
	3 Conclusions	278
	References	279
	Magnetoresistive Sensors for Surface Scanning	283
	1 Introduction	283
	2 Imaging Sensors Devices: Overview	285
	2.1 Flux Sensors	285
	2.2 Field Sensors	286
	3 Magnetoresistive Sensors in Imaging and Scanning Microscopy	287
	3.1 Arrays of Individual MR Sensors	289
	3.2 Gradiometer Configuration	290
	3.3 Cantilever MR Probes	290
	3.4 Comparison of MR Sensors	292
	4 Magnetoresistive Microscopy for Die Level Fault	292
	4.1 Sensitivity	295
	4.2 Resolution and Sensor Geometry	298
	5 Conclusion	301
	References	302
	Author Index	308