The physical properties of magnetic domain walls and electrical conductivity of permalloy thin films under external magnetic fields were studied. Using a magnetic force microscope (MFM), we observed the variation of domain configurations with the change of applied magnetic field for different film thicknesses of 245, 320, and 415 nm. A superconducting quantum interference device ( SQUID) was exploited to measure the magnetization loop for the applied magnetic field either parallel or perpendicular to the normal direction of the surface. We also found that the resistivity increases significantly as the electrical current conduction changed from parallel to perpendicular to the domain walls. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.