Origin of room temperature ferromagnetic moment in Rh-rich [Rh/Fe] multilayer thin films

Journal Article · Sat May 15 00:00:00 EDT 2010 · Journal of Applied Physics

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3360200· OSTI ID:21476227

Kande, Dhishan ^[1]; Laughlin, David; Jiangang, Zhu ^[1]

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1. Materials Science and Engineering Department, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213 (United States) and Data Storage Systems Centre, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213 (United States)

B2 ordered FeRh thin films switch from antiferromagnetic (AFM) to ferromagnetic (FM) state on heating above 350 K and switch back on cooling, with a hysteresis. This property makes FeRh a very attractive choice as a write-assist layer material for low temperature heat assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) media. Studies have shown that as we decrease the thickness of the FeRh films, the B2 phase is no longer AFM even below 350 K and there is a thickness dependant FM stabilization of the B2 phase. It was also proved that slightly Rh-richer compositions (>50 at. % Rh) were more preferable to stabilize the AFM phase. The current study focuses on growing highly ordered FeRh films by alternate layer rf sputtering of thin layers of iron and rhodium onto a heated substrate. It has been shown that films with rhodium content beyond 55 at. % contain a disordered bcc FM phase which gives rise to residual moment at room temperature even for thicker films.

• OSTI ID: 21476227
• Journal Information: Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 107, Issue 9; Conference: 11. joint MMM-Intermag conference, Washington, DC (United States), 18-22 Jan 2010; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.3360200; (c) 2010 American Institute of Physics; ISSN 0021-8979
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
ANTIFERROMAGNETISM
BCC LATTICES
DEPOSITION
FERROMAGNETIC MATERIALS
HEATING
HYSTERESIS
IRON
LAYERS
MAGNETIC MOMENTS
RHODIUM
SPUTTERING
STABILIZATION
SUBSTRATES
TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE
THIN FILMS
CRYSTAL LATTICES
CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
CUBIC LATTICES
ELEMENTS
FILMS
MAGNETIC MATERIALS
MAGNETISM
MATERIALS
METALS
PLATINUM METALS
REFRACTORY METALS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS