Effect of Ag addition on the microstructure and magnetic properties of FePt thin films

Abstract

FePt thin films and [FePt/Ag] _n multilayer thin films were prepared by magnetron sputtering technique and subsequent annealing process. By comparing the microstructure and magnetic properties of these two kinds of thin films, effects of Ag addition on the structure and properties of FePt thin films were investigated. Proper Ag addition was found helpful for FePt phase transition at lower annealing temperature. With Ag addition, the magnetic domain pattern of FePt thin film changed from maze-like pattern to more discrete island-like domain pattern in [FePt/Ag] _n multilayer thin films. In addition, introducing nonmagnetic Ag hindered FePt grains from growing larger. The in-depth defects in FePt films and [FePt/Ag] _n multilayer films verify that Ag addition is attributed to a large number of pinning site defects in [FePt/Ag] _n film and therefore has effects on its magnetic properties and microstructure.

Keywords

[FePt/Ag] _n multilayer thin films / FePt thin films / coercivity / magnetic domain patterns / pinning sites

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