Magnetothermopower of Co/Cu multilayers

Abstract

We have studied the magnetothermopower S(H,T) for a series of Co/Cu multilayers with a constant Co layer thickness of 10 Å but with Cu layer thickness varying between 9 and 21 Å. The thermopower is negative, and its magnitude increases with magnetic field. We also found the magnetothermopower to be linear in the conductance for all samples. In two samples studied, the linear relationship holds from room temperature down to 50 K, with the proportionality constant linear in temperature. The zero-field thermopower is roughly the same for all samples despite different Cu layer thickness. This behavior can be understood from the spin-dependent interface scattering model.