Magnetic Ultrathin Films

Abstract

AbstractThe magnetic properties of ultrathin ferromagnetic films a few monolayers thick differ from the magnetic properties of the same material in bulk form because a large fraction of the atoms in such films are located either on the surfaces or within one monolayer of the surfaces. As a result, the magnetic properties of ultrathin films are very sensitive to surface roughness and to the proximity of foreign atoms at the interfaces with a substrate or with an overlayers film. The first part of this chapter provides an overview of three main methods for the preparation of ultrathin films: thermal deposition, laser pulse deposition, and magnetron sputtering. Emphasis is placed on techniques used to prepare high‐quality films having smooth surfaces and important examples are discussed in detail. The second part reviews magnetic anisotropies in ultrathin films: measuring techniques, the theory of magnetic anisotropies, and the effect of surface roughness on thin‐film anisotropies. The chapter closes with a guide to the literature on thin‐film magnetic anisotropy data for several interesting systems: Fe, Co, Ni films grown on various substrates; Fe films grown on GaAs crystals; Fe/Pt alloys grown on MgO; and bcc Ni films grown on GaAs(001).