Growth and structure of f.c.c. (100) Fe/Cu multilayers deposited on Si

Abstract

Metastable f.c.c. (100) Fe/Cu multilayers have been deposited on Cu/Si (100) substrates using diode-radio frequency (r.f.) sputtering. The growth of the first Cu buffer layer 300 Å thick is optimized using kinetic ellipsometry and reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED). The structural quality of the multilayers and the in-plane texture of the stacks are evaluated using grazing X-ray reflection and RHEED measurements. The epitaxial f.c.c. Fe can be obtained when its thickness is less than the Cu film thickness under the conditions investigated. In this case, the films are strongly textured along the three directions and the fourfold symmetry of the crystallographic (100) plane is observed. For Cu thicknesses less than the Fe thicknesses, the multilayers are polycrystalline, with b.c.c. (110) Fe on f.c.c. (111) Cu structure.