Roles of nanocrystal interfaces on L1 0 ordering phase transitions in FePt thin films

Abstract

Identifying the role of interfaces in nanostructured materials on their phase transitions is of quite interest for microstructure manipulations. In the present study, we demonstrate that the increase of nanocrystal interfaces in as-deposited FePt thin films enhances the nucleation rate of L1 0-ordered domains and simultaneously inhibits their growth during the L1 0 ordering phase transition in the thin films. The enhanced nucleation rate leads to an accelerated L1 0 ordering process for the thin films. The L1 0-FePt thin films with small grain and ordered domain sizes are successfully yielded by interface engineering.