Temperature and thickness dependence at the onset of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in FePd thin films sputtered on MgO(001)

C. Clavero, J. M. García-Martín, J. L. Costa Krämer, G. Armelles, A. Cebollada, Y. Huttel, R. A. Lukaszew, and A. J. Kellock
Phys. Rev. B 73, 174405 – Published 4 May 2006

Abstract

The onset of chemical order (L10 phase) and perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in FePd(001) thin films sputtered on MgO(001) at temperatures from room temperature to 700°C and thickness between 1.4 and 22nm are investigated. It is found that the formation of the FePd ordered phase exhibiting high perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (L10 phase with the c axis in the growth direction) is affected by a two-dimensional to three-dimensional growth mode transition with increasing deposition temperatures, hindering higher chemical ordering at moderate and high temperatures. For 22-nm-thick films, the ordered phase is only obtained in a narrow range of growth temperature centered at 450°C. This fact, together with strong surface morphology dependence on the deposition temperature, determines the magnetic and magneto-optical properties of the studied system. No dependence of the ordering degree on film thickness is found for films with thicknesses of 3, 7 and 22nm grown at 450°C, with a constant value indicating that chemical ordering occurs since the early stages of growth and does not improve as the growth proceeds. The samples consist of chemically ordered nanostructures that range in size from 30 to 200nm average diameter and 0.530nm height as the film becomes thicker, and exhibit perpendicular magnetic anisotropy indicating that the c axis is parallel to the direction of growth. The largest coercive field (7kOe) corresponds to the sample with nano-sized particles, and the coercivity drastically decreases down to 1kOe as percolation sets in.

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  • Received 23 January 2006

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.73.174405

©2006 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

C. Clavero*, J. M. García-Martín, J. L. Costa Krämer, G. Armelles, and A. Cebollada

  • Instituto de Microelectrónica de Madrid-IMM (CNM-CSIC), Isaac Newton 8-PTM, E-28760 Tres Cantos, Madrid, Spain

Y. Huttel

  • Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid (ICMM-CSIC), 28049 Cantoblanco, Madrid, Spain

R. A. Lukaszew

  • Physics and Astronomy Department, University of Toledo, Mstop 111, 2801 W. Bancroft, Toledo, Ohio, USA

A. J. Kellock

  • IBM Almaden Research Center, 650 Harry Road, San Jose, California 95120, USA

  • *Electronic address: cesarcl@imm.cnm.csic.es

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Vol. 73, Iss. 17 — 1 May 2006

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