Growth and magnetic properties of the sandwich structure Fe/magnetic silicide/Si(100) obtained from in situ optic and magneto-optic data

Abstract

It is demonstrated by the Surface Magneto-Optic Kerr Effect and Differential Reflectance Spectroscopy methods that structures free of magnetically dead layers can be created by the deposition of iron at room temperature onto a prefabricated magnetic silicide layer. The magnetic silicide can be formed by the deposition of iron at 70 ∘C onto a layer of amorphous silicon prefabricated on Si(100). Both in the silicide and the iron film, magnetism onsets after the iron amount deposited reaches some critical value. The spontaneous magnetization vector in the iron film changes its direction twice during the film growth. Sufficiently thick iron films persist being ferromagnetic in air for years.