Domain wall nucleation in epitaxial exchange-biased Fe/IrMn bilayers with highly misaligned anisotropies

► We show the controlled anisotropy misalignment in epitaxial Fe/IrMn bilayers. ► Magnetization reversal is controlled by domain wall behaviors. ► Complete study on the magnetization reversal is demonstrated. ► We report a generalized 'domain wall nucleation model' for exchange bias.