Stress-induced magnetic anisotropy of CoFe 2O 4 thin films using pulsed laser deposition

Abstract

Cobalt ferrite (CoFe 2O 4) thin films (≈70 nm) were epitaxially grown on TiO 2-terminated (0 0 1) SrTiO 3 substrates by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). Films with very smooth surface, which follow the terrace of the substrate, were obtained at temperatures below 600 °C. The magnetic properties of CoFe 2O 4 can be controlled by changing the deposition parameters. The in-plane magnetic anisotropy can be explained as induced by the compressive stress in films growing at low temperature and low oxygen pressure. Tuneable magnetic properties by PLD make CoFe 2O 4 more attractive for practical application, especially to create multi-functional devices in combination with perovskite ferroelectric films.