Crystallographic structure of ultrathin Fe films on Cu(100)

We report the observation of bcc-like crystal structures in 2-4 monolayer (ML) Fe films grown on fcc Cu(100) using scanning tunneling microscopy. The local bcc structure provides a straightforward explanation for their frequently reported outstanding magnetic properties, i.e., ferromagnetic ordering in all layers with a Curie temperature above 300 K. The nonpseudomorphic structure, which becomes pseudomorphic above 4 ML film thickness, is unexpected in terms of conventional rules of thin film growth and stresses the importance of finite thickness effects in ferromagnetic ultrathin films.     

Ground state magnetic properties of ultrathin fcc Fe and Co films on Cu(001) surfaces

The oxidation characteristics of silicon implanted with a low dose of nitrogen (1–3×10¹⁵cm^–2) have been studied for dry oxidation conditions at 1020°C. The wafers were subjected to a pre-oxidation annealing. Complete inhibition of the oxide growth occurs in the initial stage of oxidation, while the oxidation rate for prolonged oxidation is identical to that for pure silicon. The oxidation resistance increases with the implantation dose. The resistance is attributed to the formation of a nitrogen-rich surface film during annealing. This layer, which consists of only a few monolayers, is presumably composed of oxynitride. The electrical characteristics of MOS capacitors formed on implanted wafers show that the interface state density is not significantly increased by the low-dose N implantation.     

Magnetization reversal of Fe ultrathin film on Cu(100)

The magnetization reversal of Fe/Cu(100) ultrathin films grown at room temperature is investigated by using an in situ magneto-optical Kerr effect polarimeter with a magnet that can rotate in a plane of incidence. There occur spin reorientation transitions from out-of-plane to in-plane magnetizations in 8 and 12 monolayers (ML) thick iron films. The coercive fields are observed to be proportional to the reciprocal of the cosine with respect to the easy axis, suggesting that the domain-wall displacement plays a main role in the magnetization reversal process.     

Surface structure of ultrathin Fe films on Cu(001) revisited

The structure and magnetism of ultrathin Fe films epitaxially grown on a Cu(001) surface are investigated by grazing scattering of fast H and He atoms or ions. By making use of a new variant of ion beam triangulation based on the detection of the number of emitted electrons, we obtain direct information on the structure of the film surface. We observe for room temperature growth a dominant and defined fcc-like structure. Complex surface reconstructions as reported in recent STM and LEED studies are observed only for cooling and H2 dosing.     

Frozen low-spin interface in ultrathin Fe films on Cu(111)

In ultrathin film systems, it is a major challenge to understand how a thickness-driven phase transition proceeds along the cross-sectional direction of the films. We use ultrathin Fe films on Cu(111) as a prototype system to demonstrate how to obtain such information using an in situ scanning tunneling microscope and the surface magneto-optical Kerr effect. The magnetization depth profile of a thickness-driven low-spin to high-spin magnetic phase transition is deduced from the experimental data, which leads us to conclude that a low-spin Fe layer at the Fe/Cu interface stays live upon the phase transition. The magnetically live low-spin phase is believed to be induced by a frozen fcc Fe layer that survives a thickness-driven fcc-->bcc structural transition.     

Magnetic hyperfine fields in ultrathin Ni films on Cu(100)

The magnetic hyperfine field was measured at ¹¹¹In(¹¹¹Cd) probe atoms in ultrathin Ni films epitaxially grown on Cu(100) utilizing the perturbed -angular correlation (PAC) method. The behaviour of the hyperfine field as a function of temperature was studied for different film thicknesses ranging from 2 up to 10 monolayers. It was found that the strength of the hyperfine fields as well as the critical temperatures are strongly reduced for thin nickel films and approach the bulk value with increasing film thickness. The orientation of the hyperfine field is discussed.     

Search for ferromagnetism in ultrathin epitaxial films: Cr/Au(100), Cr/Cu(100), and Fe/Cu(100)

The surface magneto-optic Kerr effect (SMOKE) technique was used to search for ferromagnetism in monolayer-range films of Cr and Fe grown on Au(100) and Cu(100). The growth modes were characterized using low energy electron diffraction (LEED) and Auger electron spectroscopy. The fcc structure of Cr could not be stabilized on Cu(100). Ferromagnetism was not observed for the Cr/Au(100) films at temperature above 100 K. Ferromagnetism also was not observed for fcc Fe/Cu(100) grown at room temperature; but for growth at >150°C, a ferromagnetic, metastable state was observed for the top layer of the Fe film, in the absence of bulk ferromagnetism. The ferromagnetic Fe/Au(100) system was used to establish the sensitivity of the approach.     

Local magnetic properties of ultrathin ferromagnetic fcc-Fe-films on Cu(001)

Conversion electron Mössbayer spectroscopy (CEMS) on three monolayers (ML) thick metastable fcc-Fe(001) films grown epitaxially on a Cu(001) substrate under different conditions shows that these films are characterized by a distributionP(B _hf) of magnetic hyperfine fieldsB _hf. The vast majority of⁵⁷Fe nuclei experience relatively large hyperfine fields at low temperature. The temperature dependence of the most probable fieldB _peak was found to follow aT ^3/2 spin-wave law below 300 K. It is shown from the relative line intensities that preferential Fe spin orientation perpendicular to the film plane exists in films grown at 120 K, while preferential in-plane spin orientation is found for a growth temperature of 300 K. Coating a low-temperature grown Fe film by 2 ML of Cu(001) drastically reduces the hyperfine field, in contrast to the case of room-temperature grown Cu-coated films.Dedicated to Professor Ulrich Gonser on the occasion of his 70th birthday     

Structural and magnetic properties of ultrathin epitaxial Fe films on GaAs(001) and related semiconductor substrates

This article presents a review of the structural and magnetic properties of ultrathin epitaxial Fe films on GaAs(001) and related semiconductor substrates. Interest in these systems and Fe/GaAs(001) in particular has increased significantly over the last two decades, largely due to the emergence of the field of magnetoelectronics. Since then numerous studies of molecular beam epitaxy of Fe on GaAs(001) have been carried out, making it by far the best researched Fe/semiconductor(001) system. Issues such as magnetic anisotropy in the ultrathin regime, however, remain controversial with contradictory reports in the literature giving rise to considerable controversy within the field. By carefully scrutinizing the enormous amount of literature published on Fe/GaAs(001) so far and analysing these results within the wider context of Fe/semiconductor(001) systems, this article tries to settle some of these controversial issues, hence providing a long overdue ‘common denominator' for research in this area.