Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy induced by tetragonal distortion of FeCo alloy films grown on Pd(001)

We grew tetragonally distorted FexCo1-x alloy films on Pd(001). Theoretical first-principles calculations for such films predicted a high saturation magnetization and a high uniaxial magnetic anisotropy energy for specific values of the lattice distortion c/a and the alloy composition x. The magnetic anisotropy was investigated using the magneto-optical Kerr effect. An out-of-plane easy axis of magnetization was observed for Fe0.5Co0.5 films in the thickness range of 4 to 14 monolayers. The magnetic anisotropy energy induced by the tetragonal distortion is estimated to be almost 2 orders of magnitude larger than the value for bulk FeCo alloys. Using LEED Kikuchi patterns, a change of the easy axis of magnetization can be related to a decrease of the tetragonal distortion with thickness.     

High rotatable magnetic anisotropy in MnBi thin films

The variations of the structural and magnetic properties of Bi/Mn/Bi and Mn/Bi/Mn trilayer film systems of equiatomic composition in the process of vacuum annealing are studied. The annealing of Bi/Mn/Bi films at a temperature of 270°C for an hour results in the synthesis of the well-studied highly oriented low-temperature LT-MnBi(001) phase with the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy K _u ～ 1.1 × 10⁷ erg/cm³ and coercivity H _C ～ 1.5 kOe. In contrast to Bi/Mn/Bi, polycrystalline LT-MnBi nanoclusters are formed in Mn/Bi/Mn films under the same annealing conditions. A high rotatable magnetic anisotropy exceeding the shape anisotropy is detected in the films under consideration: the easy axis of anisotropy with the inclusion of the delay angle in magnetic fields above the coercivity H > H _C = 9.0 kOe can be oriented in any spatial direction. It is shown that the nature of rotatable magnetic anisotropy is due to the structural coexistence of epitaxially coupled LT-MnBi and QHTP-Mn_1.08Bi phases. The reported experimental results indicate the existence of a new class of ferromagnetic film media with the spatially tunable easy axis.     

Dynamic susceptibility of thin films with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

We investigate the spin dynamics related to the Gilbert damping constant in infinite continuous thin films with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA), based on numerical and analytic approaches. We obtain the dynamic susceptibility of the infinite continuous thin films with various PMA energies by using micromagnetic simulations with periodic boundary conditions. These results are compared with the analytic solution that we derived from the Landau–Lifshitz–Gilbert equation. Based on our numerical and analytic studies, we support the physical analysis for results in the experimental determination of the Gilbert damping constant for PMA materials.     

Optical measurement of magnetic anisotropy in thin garnet films

This paper describes an improved optical method for measuring locally the cubic and uniaxial magnetic anisotropy fields in thin garnet films. The derivative of the in-plane component of the magnetization is measured, using a double modulation technique which combines polarization modulation with field modulation. A simple graphical method is devised to calculateH _k andH _u from the extrema in this derivative curve. The results of measurements on magnetic garnet films obtained by different methods are compared. Local measurements of the anisotropy induced by substrate facet strain are described.     

Spin-wave resonance and magnetic anisotropy in FePt thin films

Ferromagnetic Resonance (FMR) measurements at room temperature and X-band microwave frequency were performed on polycrystalline FePt thin films with face-centered cubic structure. With the external field perpendicular to the film plane, the absorption fields H_n of the odd and even spin-wave resonance modes n detected for the Fe_0.44Pt_0.56(45 nm)/Si(1 0 0) and Fe_0.51Pt_0.49(105 nm)/Pt(55 nm)/MgO(1 0 0) films, were found to obey the well-known H_n×n² ratio, giving for these films the exchange stiffness constant values of 3.9×10⁻⁸ and 4.4×10^–7 erg/cm, respectively. The study of the out-of-plane angular dependence of the absorption field of the uniform FMR mode allowed the measurement of the effective magnetic anisotropy constants of 5.3×10⁶ , 6.4×10⁶ , and 6.7×10⁶ erg/cm³, related, respectively, to the [1 1 1], [1 0 0], and [1 1 0] textures present in the films.     

Surface magnetic anisotropy effects in the elastoexchange spin dynamics of thin magnetic films

Anomalies arising in the elastoexchange spin dynamics of a bounded magnet when exchange boundary conditions are imposed are studied for the example of a uniformly magnetized film of a rhombic antiferromagnetic. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 68, 110–115 (August 1998)     

Singularity in high-frequency susceptibility of thin magnetic films with uniaxial anisotropy

A sharp peak of magnetic susceptibility has been observed in the ferromagnetic resonance spectra of uniaxial magnetic films placed in a planar field directed orthogonal to the easy magnetization axis, along which a pumping high-frequency magnetic field has been oriented. The peak width is considerably narrower than the line width of the uniform ferromagnetic resonance, and its position in a field equal to the film anisotropy field does not depend on the pumping frequency. The nature of the peak is associated with a drastic increase in the static transverse susceptibility of the film in the vicinity of the anisotropy field. It is shown phenomenologically that the peak can be observed only for quality samples with small angular and amplitude dispersion of the uniaxial anisotropy.     

Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in FePt/AlN layered structure

FePt/AlN layered structures were deposited onto fused quartz substrate by magnetron sputtering method and found to show in-plane anisotropy. However, annealing of the films leads to a transition of magnetic anisotropy from in-plane to perpendicular direction, and the perpendicular anisotropy gets stronger as the annealing temperature increases. Structural analysis shows that the FePt and AlN layers are textured with (111) and (002) orientations, respectively, along the film normal, and no ordering transformation is found for FePt alloy. To study the origin of the developed anisotropy, stress condition was analyzed with an equal biaxial stress model using X-ray diffraction 2θ–ω scan method and interface quality was evaluated by X-ray reflectivity measurement and transmission electron microscopy observation. The results reveal that perpendicular magnetic anisotropy of the annealed FePt/AlN layered structure can be attributed to the enhanced interface anisotropy, which is due to flattening of the interfaces through annealing.     

Intrinsic distribution of magnetic anisotropy in thin films probed by patterned nanostructures

We demonstrate that the switching field distribution (SFD) in arrays of 50 nm to 5 microm Co/Pd elements, with perpendicular anisotropy, can be explained by a distribution of intrinsic anisotropy rather than any fabrication related effects. Further, simulations of coercivity and SFD versus element size allow the distribution of intrinsic anisotropy to be quantified in highly exchanged coupled thin films where the reversal mechanism is one of nucleation followed by rapid domain wall motion.     

Structural origin of magnetic anisotropy in Co-Pt alloy films probed by polarized XAFS

Polarized X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) measurements at the Co K and Pt L₃ edges show that the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy found in epitaxial fcc CoPt₃ (111) films stems from the existence of anisotropic local ordering. Such ordering, induced during the codeposition process and dependent on the growth temperature, is characterized by preferential CoCo pairs in the film plane, balanced by preferential CoPt pairs out of the plane, resulting from some Co 2D-segregation. Polarized XAFS at the Pt edge reveals similar anisotropic local ordering in epitaxial hcp Co₃Pt (0001) films exhibiting a larger magnetocrystalline anisotropy compared to that of bulk hcp Co. Besides, a polarization dependence of the Co XANES profile is observed only for the Co₃Pt films exhibiting hcp symmetry. Received: 29 April 1998 / Revised: 27 July 1998 / Accepted: 31 August 1998     

Magnetic anisotropy in thin ferromagnetic films

The magnetic properties of thin ferromagnetic films are studied taking into account the magnetic anisotropy term in the Hamiltonian. In the second approximation equations are obtained for the magnetization of the monatomic layers parallel to the surface of the thin film. From these equations one obtains the Curie temperature, which depends on the thickness of the thin film and the ratio a between the anisotropy constant and the exchange energy between two neighbours. A value can be chosen for such that the thin film becomes ferromagnetic only for a thickness greater than a definite value and in this manner the theoretical results can be fitted to the experimental data. The situation in cobalt thin films is dealt with in particular.

---

. , . , . , , - , . , , .

---

---

The author extends his thanks to the research workers of CIFA 1 as well as to Dr. L. Valenta for information on the same subject.     

Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy of ultrathin FeCo alloy films on Pd(0 0 1) surface: First principles study

Using the full potential linearized augmented plane wave (FLAPW) method, thickness dependent magnetic anisotropy of ultrathin FeCo alloy films in the range of 1 monolayer (ML) to 5 ML coverage on Pd(0 0 1) surface has been explored. We have found that the FeCo alloy films have close to half metallic state and well-known surface enhancement in thin film magnetism is observed in Fe atom, whereas the Co has rather stable magnetic moment. However, the largest magnetic moment in Fe and Co is found at 1 ML thickness. Interestingly, it has been observed that the interface magnetic moments of Fe and Co are almost the same as those of surface elements. The similar trend exists in orbital magnetic moment. This indicates that the strong hybridization between interface FeCo alloy and Pd gives rise to the large magnetic moment. Theoretically calculated magnetic anisotropy shows that the 1 ML FeCo alloy has in-plane magnetization, but the spin reorientation transition (SRT) from in-plane to perpendicular magnetization is observed above 2 ML thickness with huge magnetic anisotropy energy. The maximum magnetic anisotropy energy for perpendicular magnetization is as large as 0.3 meV/atom at 3 ML film thickness with saturation magnetization of . Besides, the calculated X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) has been presented.     

Growth-induced magnetic anisotropy behavior in thin garnet films fabricated by pulsed laser deposition

The effect of target rotation rate on the magneto-optical properties and induced magnetic anisotropy of pulse laser deposition grown Bi:YIG garnets has been investigated. The rotation rate dependence of magnetic properties of thin films has been studied using magneto-optical Faraday rotation combined with magneto-optical Kerr measurement setup. Our results show that decreasing the target rotation rate can also increase the polar coercive field and hence magnetic anisotropy. Also the spectral answer of samples show the capability of use of them in one off optical ranges such as visible, near infrared and far infrared regions.     

Influence of imperfections in magnetic thin films on the relaxation of the uniaxial anisotropy

Skew aging and its dependence on stabilization treatments have been investigated in cylindrical, electroplated permalloy films by annealing in hard axis magnetic fields. The skew fieldH _± was measured with the Belson test method. Plots ofH _± versus a logarithmic time scale show nearly straight lines in a range of four decades for temperatures between ambient temperature and 200 °C. This behaviour is supposed to be explained with a distribution of the relaxation processes in activation energy between 0·8 and 1·6 eV independent of the stabilization treatment. The frequency factor lying between 10⁹ and 10¹⁰ sec is found to be a function of the stabilization temperature. The values can be interpreted by first-order kinetic processes, while this is not possible by assuming discrete activation energies. The reason for the distribution is the highly defective structure of thin films, especially in grain boundaries, dislocations and around impurities. By stabilization treatments the total volume of these regions and the vacancy concentration decrease. Only the Fe-Fe pair ordering mechanism is necessary to interpret the annealing data, if one assumes that also pairs in locally defective regions contribute to the anisotropy.