Faraday effect in nanogranular Co-Sm-O films

The Faraday effect (FE) was studied in Co-Sm-O composite films consisting of nanoparticles of metallic cobalt embedded in a samarium oxide dielectric matrix. The volume of the magnetic phase was ～60%. The FE spectral dependence for the condensates studied revealed a substantial change as compared to that for bulk cobalt samples, as well as for the films of nanocrystalline Co and CoSm films prepared in this study. An enhancement of the FE was also observed in the short-wavelength part of the optical spectrum.     

Structure and the magnetic and magneto-optical properties of Co-Sm-O nanogranular films

The magnetic properties and magneto-optical effects in nanocomposites based on Co-Sm-O films prepared through pulsed plasma sputtering of a SmCo₅ target are investigated. It is shown that, depending on the technological conditions and regimes of subsequent annealing, the films can have different structures from cobalt nanoparticles distributed in the dielectric samarium oxide matrix with a magnetic phase volume of more than 60% to a continuous polycrystalline cobalt film with embedded samarium oxide nanoparticles. The evolution of the spectra of the magneto-optical Kerr effect and the field dependences of the magnetization is studied as a function of the film structure.     

Synthesis and magneto-optical properties of nanogranular Co-Ti-O films

Studies of the structural and magneto-optical properties of nanogranular Co-Ti-O films prepared under conditions of the solid-state reaction with oxygen exchange in the CoO/Ti layered structures are presented. The formation of granular films with compositions near or below the percolation threshold is shown. The specific features of the magneto-optical spectra of the prepared films as compared to the spectra of continuous metallic films are revealed.     

Tailoring the structural and magnetic properties of sol-gel derived Sm-Co nanogranular films

In this study, we investigated the microstructure, phase evolution and magnetic properties of nanogranular films of Sm-Co compounds processed by the sol-gel method. By controlling the compositional ratio of Sm:Co precursor concentration, nanogranular films consisting of three distinct hard magnetic phases namely, Sm₂Co₇, SmCo₅ and Sm₂Co₁₇ with coercivity values of 1.78, 2.94 and 2.12 kOe, respectively, were obtained through this technique.     

高电阻率多层纳米颗粒膜软磁特性及微波磁导率

研究了应用于微波频段的多层纳米颗粒膜的电阻率、软磁特性和微波磁导率.采用多次顺序沉积Co₄₀Fe₄₀B₂₀和SiO₂薄层制备了薄膜.在100kA/m均匀面内磁场经过250℃真空退火2h,制备的Co₄₀Fe₄₀B₂₀/SiO₂多层膜具有难轴矫顽力为210A/m、饱和磁化强度为838.75kA/m、电阻率为2.06×10^{3关键词： 纳米颗粒膜 电阻率 软磁特性 微波磁导率}     

Electrical and magnetoresistive properties of nanogranular CoFeB-CaF2

The electrical properties and magnetoresistance of (Co₄₁Fe₃₉B₂₀) _x (CaF₂)_{100 ? x} composite are investigated. The principal mechanisms of electric charge transfer at low temperatures are determined. The effective density of localized states at the Fermi level and the average number of localized states between adjacent granules at various concentrations of the metal phase are estimated.     

Microstructure and electrical properties of SnS thin films

Thin SnS films are of interest for optoelectronics. The influence of the preparation modes on the microstructure and electrical properties of thin SnS films obtained by the hot-wall method on substrates made of pure glass and glass with a molybdenum sublayer has been investigated. It has been established that the formation of SnS films with two texture types (111) and (010) is possible on the substrates made of pure glass, depending on the mode. The resistivity and the temperature coefficient of thermoelectric power of the SnS films on glass vary in the range from 12 to 817 Ω cm and from 37 to 597 μV/K, respectively, depending on the preparation modes. The activation energy is 0.11–0.12 eV.     

Microstructure and dielectric properties of granular composite films

This paper reviews some of the recent progress in understanding the relationship between the microstructure and the d c and optical properties of composites. By focusing on two unique characteristics of metal-insulator composites — the percolation threshold and the optical dielectric anomaly — it is demonstrated that the concept of a ‘structural unit’ arises naturally as a means for incorporating the microstructural information in the calculation of the effective dielectric function ̄ for an inhomogeneous system. A theory based on a statistical consideration of two types of structural unit is shown to result in values for ̄ in excellent agreement with observed data.     

Critical magnetization and hysteresis of nanogranular films with perpendicular anisotropy

The magnetic-field dependences of the stability boundaries of the nonequilibrium magnetic states that exist in a nanogranular film with perpendicular anisotropy in tilted magnetic fields are theoretically described, and the corresponding critical magnetization is calculated. The field dependences of the critical magnetization of the film are analyzed at various ratios of the anisotropy field of particles to the maximum possible demagnetizing field of the film. In a tilted magnetic field, the magnetization reversal curves, which include hysteresis loops, are shown to consist of segments of the following three types: equilibrium stable magnetization, nonequilibrium stable magnetization, and critical type of magnetization.     

Microstructure and soft magnetic properties of CoFeZrO thin films

Nanogranular CoFeZrO thin films were successfully prepared by radio frequency reactive magnetron sputtering in O₂/Ar atmosphere. The magnetic properties and microstructure were investigated. It is found that the Co_17.08Fe_49.76Zr_16.24O_16.91 films show the best soft magnetic properties: magnetic coercivity of 0.3 Oe; anisotropy field of 44.9 Oe; saturation magnetization of 16.8 kG; electrical resistivity of 462.8 μΩ cm. The effective permeability of the films reaches 800 and flattens up to 2 GHz.     

Spintronics in metal–insulator nanogranular magnetic thin films

Magnetic and electrical properties of metal–insulator nanogranular thin films are overviewed, from the spintronics point of view, by presenting our recent results. (1) The metal-rich ferromagnetic ones possess ultrahigh-frequency (MHz–GHz) permeabilities μ′, μ″, mainly owing to large induced magnetic anisotropy field H_k. They are useful for various magnetic devices, such as thin-film inductors and noise suppressors. (2) The insulator-rich superpramagnetic ones exhibit tunnel-type magnetoresistance, being large in (Mg or Al)-fluoride base films. The Granular-In-Gap (GIG) devices with improved field sensitivity are useful for very low magnetic-field sensors.     

Growth-induced perpendicular anisotropy of grains in Co-Al-O nanogranular ferromagnetic films

This paper reports on the results of the magnetostatic measurements for Co-Al-O nanogranular films over a wide range of concentrations of the ferromagnetic component x. It has been revealed that grains in the films are characterized by the growth-induced anisotropy with easy axes directed perpendicular to the film plane. The maximum field of the single-grain perpendicular anisotropy reaches ∼2.5 kOe for samples in the vicinity of the percolation threshold (x ≈ 61 at % Co). It has been established that the characteristic features of the superparamagnetic behavior of an ensemble of oriented Stoner-Wohlfarth particles are retained for the sample with x ≈ 61 at % Co in the presence of the demagnetization field associated with the net magnetization of the film. The influence of the demagnetization field of the film on the shape of the magnetization reversal curves, the coercivity, and the blocking temperature has been investigated and simulated. The results of the simulation are consistent with the experimental data.     

Polycaproamide films containing ionic liquids: Microstructure and properties

Films of polycaproamide and its composites containing ionic liquids (ILs) derived from 1-methyl-3-ethylimidazolium cation and N(CF₃SO₂)₂ or N(CN)₂ anions having crystalline structures were cast from solutions in formic acid. The structure and concentration of the ILs were shown to affect the conductivity (up to ∼10⁻⁴ S cm⁻¹ 25°C), microstructure (studied by X-ray diffraction, SEM, and AFM), and thermomechanical properties of the films.     

Microstructure and properties of manganese dioxide films prepared by electrodeposition

Nanostructured manganese dioxide films were obtained by galvanostatic, pulse and reverse pulse electrodeposition from 0.01 to 0.1 M KMnO₄ solutions. The deposition yield was investigated by in situ monitoring the deposit mass using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). Obtained films were studied by electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis, energy dispersive spectroscopy, thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis. The QCM and electron microscopy data were utilized for the investigation of deposition kinetics and film formation mechanism. It was shown that the deposition rate and film microstructure could be changed by variation of deposition conditions. The method allowed the fabrication of dense or porous films. The thickness of dense films was limited to ∼0.1 μm due to the insulating properties of manganese dioxide and film cracking, attributed to drying shrinkage. Porous and crack-free 1-2 μm films were obtained using galvanostatic or reverse pulse deposition from 0.02 M KMnO₄ solutions. It was shown that film porosity is beneficial for the charge transfer during deposition and crack prevention in thick films. Moreover, porous nanostructured films showed good capacitive behavior for applications in electrochemical supercapacitors. The porous nanostructured films prepared in the reverse pulse regime showed higher specific capacitance (SC) compared to the SC of the galvanostatic films. The highest SC of 279 F/g in a voltage window of 1 V was obtained in 0.1 M Na₂SO₄ solutions at a scan rate of 2 mV/s.     

Co-based nanogranular thin films on flexible substrate for gigahertz applications

The Co-based granular thin films were deposited on the flexible substrate (Kapton) by magnetron sputtering. The films comprise of Co nanocrystallites and small amount of amorphous (Al,O)-rich inter-granular phase and have the electric resistivities in the range 50–120 μΩ cm, depending on the composition and thickness. The as-deposited films with thickness <80 nm have low coercivity (<20 Oe along hard direction), high permeability (up to 500) and resonance frequency up to 2.5 GHz. Compared to the rigid films, the flexible films have relatively higher coercivity and lower resonance frequency. A comparison between Co-based granular films and FeTaN continuous films has also been discussed.     

Coercive field vs. temperature in Fe/Ag nanogranular films

We investigate the temperature dependence of the coercive field of a nanogranular co-sputtered Fe/Ag film. The sample is superparamagnetic at room temperature and displays a 3% giant magnetoresistance. As temperature decreases from 40 to 9 K, hysteresis appears in magnetization loops. The coercive field dependence on temperature turns out to be different from the power law expected for single-domain monodispersed ferromagnetic particle ensembles. The results are analyzed in terms of a model taking into account the effect of magnetic grain size distribution on coercive field. The agreement between experiment and the model is excellent. The possibility to gain information concerning width and symmetry of the particles volume distribution from the study of coercivity's scaling with temperature is discussed.     

Microstructure and optical properties of ZnO/porous silicon nanocomposite films

In this study, porous silicon (PS) templates were formed by electrochemical anodization on p-type (100) silicon wafer and ZnO films were deposited on PS substrates using radio frequency (RF) reactive magnetron sputtering technique. The effects of oxygen partial pressures of growth ZnO films and annealing ambience on the microstructure and photoluminescence (PL) of the ZnO/PS nanocomposite films were systematically investigated by X-ray diffraction and fluorescence spectrophotometry. The results indicated that all ZnO/PS nanocomposite films were polycrystalline in nature with a hexagonal wurtzite structure and the (002) oriented ZnO films had the best crystal quality under O₂:Ar ratio of 10:10 sccm and annealing in vacuum. PL measurements at room temperature revealed that ZnO/PS nanocomposite systems formed a broad PL band including the blue and green emissions from ZnO and red-orange emission from the PS. The mechanism and interpretation of broadband PL of the nanocomposites were discussed in detail using an oxygen-bonding model in PS and a native defects model in ZnO.     

Microstructure and magnetic properties of FeRh thin films with Pt doping

In this paper,the structure and magnetic properties of FeRh alloy thin films with a small amount of Pt doping fabricated onto a glass substrate by sputtering are investigated systematically.XRD results show that the diffraction pattern of as-deposited film exhibits only nonmagnetic γ phase.After annealing,the disordered γ phase transforms to an ordered α' phase.The temperature dependence of saturation magnetization of different annealing times and Pt contents are characterized.The phase transition temperatu...     

Implanted ZnO thin films: Microstructure, electrical and electronic properties

Magnetron sputtered polycrystalline ZnO thin films were implanted using Al, Ag, Sn, Sb and codoped with TiN in order to improve the conductivity and to attempt to achieve p-type behaviour. Structural and electrical properties of the implanted ZnO thin films were examined with X-ray diffractometry (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and conductivity measurements. Depth profiles of the implanted elements varied with the implant species. Implantation causes a partial amorphisation of the crystalline structure and decreases the effective grain size of the films. One of the findings is the improvement, as a consequence of implantation, in the conductivity of initially poorly conductive samples. Heavy doping may help for the conversion of conduction type of ZnO thin films. Annealing in vacuum mitigated structural damage and stress caused by implantation, and improved the conductivity of the implanted ZnO thin films.     

Microstructure and discharge properties of Mg-Zr-O protective films in plasma display panel

Mg-Zr-O protective films for plasma display panels (PDPs) were deposited on soda-lime glass substrates by magnetron sputtering method. The effects of Zr doping on both the discharge properties (firing voltage, V_f and the minimum sustaining voltage, V_s) and the microstructure of the Mg-Zr-O films were investigated. The results show that the deposited Mg-Zr-O films retain the NaCl-type structure as the pure MgO crystal. The doped Zr exists in the form of Zr⁴⁺ substitution solution in MgO crystal and an appropriate amount of Zr can improve the surface characteristics of the Mg-Zr-O films effectively. When the Zr atomic concentration is about 2%, the Mg-Zr-O films have the strongest (2 0 0) preferred orientation and the minimum surface roughness. The firing voltage and the minimum sustaining voltage of Mg-Zr-O protective layer are reduced at most by about 25 V and 15 V, respectively, compared with those of the pure MgO film. Mg-Zr-O protective layers with an appropriate amount of Zr are promising to meet the demands of advanced high-vision PDPs.