Epitaxial growth limit and preferred orientations of Co-Cr films sputter-deposited at high Ar pressures.

Abstract

Epitaxial growth limits and the preferred orientations of Co-Cr filmssputter-deposited at a high Ar pressure of 70 Pa were investigated. It wasfound that, although the intrinsic growth of the film has a preferred orientationof (11·0) parallel to the film plane for the present deposition condition, the initial growing layer could have a strong preferred orientation of (00·1) plane due to the hetero-epitaxial growth on the Ti underlayer. The effect ofthe epitaxial growth holds to the thickness of only about 200nm, then replacedby the (11·0) orientation via an intermediate layer with co-growing of both (10·0) and (11·0) planes. The thickness of the initial growing layer with (00·1) orientation is sufficient for the application of the Co-Cr film to a perpendicularrecording medium.