Magnetoresistance of magnetite

Abstract

The magnetoresistance behavior of Fe3O4 in polycrystalline thin film, powder compact, and single-crystal form are compared. Negative magnetoresistance with peaks at the coercive field, observed in thin films and powder compacts but not in the single crystal, is due to field-induced alignment of the magnetization of contiguous grains. The effect is associated with intergranular transport of spin-polarized electrons.