Abstract
Sm-Fe thin films are prepared on Cu(111) underlayers hetero-epitaxially grown on MgO(111) single-crystal substrates by using an ultra-high vacuum molecular beam epitaxy system. The Sm/Fe composition is varied from Fe-rich (10 at. % Sm - Fe) to Sm-rich (30 at. % Sm - Fe) region including SmFe5 stoichiometry. The influence of film composition on the film structure is studied by in-situ reflection highenergy electron diffraction and X-ray diffraction. Metastable Sm(Fe,Cu)5 ordered phase formation is recognized in the Sm-Fe films with the investigated compositions. Cu atoms diffuse from the underlayer into the Sm-Fe film and substitute the Fe site in SmFe5 structure forming an alloy compound of Sm(Fe,Cu)5 . The Sm-Fe films with Fe-rich compositions consist of Sm(Fe,Cu)5 and bcc-Fe phases, whereas the Sm-Fe films with Sm-rich compositions consist of Sm(Fe,Cu)5 and amorphous phases. Cu atom diffusion into Sm-Fe film is assisting the formation of ordered phase.
Highlights
Magnetized thin films with high uniaxial magnetocrystalline anisotropy energies (Ku) have attracted much attention to applications like magnetic recording media, magnetic random access memory devices, etc
It is known that Cu atoms diffuse into Sm-Co film from underlayer and substitute the Co site in SmCo5 structure forming an alloy compound of Sm(Co,Cu
With increasing the film thickness beyond 15 nm [figure 1(a-3)], a reflection corresponding to 1:5 ordered phase appears, as shown in the simulated reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) spot maps of figures 2(c)–(f) and RHEED reflections from Cu and Fe crystals decreases
Summary
Magnetized thin films with high uniaxial magnetocrystalline anisotropy energies (Ku) have attracted much attention to applications like magnetic recording media, magnetic random access memory devices, etc. SmCo5 polycrystalline [1,2,3,4,5,6] and epitaxial [7,8,9] films with (0001) texture have been prepared by employing Cu [1,2,3,4, 8, 9], Cu/Ti [3, 4], Ru/Cu/Ru [5], Ru [7], and RuCr [6] underlayers Most of these films include Cu layers [1,2,3,4,5, 8, 9]. The effects of film composition on the film growth and the film structure are investigated
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