Pulse switching in thin magnetic films

The main results of the investigations of pulse switching in thin magnetic films with uniaxial anisotropy which have been obtained in Moscow State University are reviewed. Simultaneous investigation of integral switching properties, inner effective field, and dynamic domains produced during pulse switching has increased our understanding of bi-directional incoherent rotation mechanism and found new peculiarities of the pulse switching by domain boundary propagation. A new variety of incoherent rotation which manifests itself at strong fields has been found. It has been also found that the curve representing the pulse field dependence of an inverse switching time in the general case consists of five distinct regions. The relation between these regions and the switching mechanisms are discussed.