Enhancing perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and magneto-optical signal of electron beam evaporated [Co/Pt]1 and [Co/Pt]2 thin films
Nanostructured magnetic multilayers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) are interesting materials for a plethora of magneto-optical and spintronic applications. The search for PMA in these heterostructures is commonly pursued by employing magnetron sputtering under ultra-high vacuum conditi...
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| Language: | English |
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AIP Publishing LLC
2025-06-01
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| Series: | APL Materials |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/5.0274706 |
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| author | D. Doménech A. Villar C. Redondo N. A. Río-López J. M. Porro R. Morales |
| author_facet | D. Doménech A. Villar C. Redondo N. A. Río-López J. M. Porro R. Morales |
| author_sort | D. Doménech |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Nanostructured magnetic multilayers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) are interesting materials for a plethora of magneto-optical and spintronic applications. The search for PMA in these heterostructures is commonly pursued by employing magnetron sputtering under ultra-high vacuum conditions and stacking a large number of layer repetitions. This work introduces a straightforward approach for Co/Pt ultra-thin film growth using electron beam evaporation under lower demanding vacuum conditions—i.e., base pressures around 10−6 mbar—achieving a high degree of PMA and tunable magnetic properties with only one repetition of the magnetic material. The non-conformal deposition geometry of this technique ensures compatibility with micro- and nanofabrication. A Cu buffer layer promotes strong PMA, as it enhances the (111) texture growth of the Co/Pt stack under high vacuum conditions. The control of the Cu and Pt thicknesses allows to fine-tune coercivities across a wide range of magnetic fields while maintaining a well-defined out-of-plane loop squareness and a sharp transition between the two perpendicular states. The influence of the Cu layer on the magneto-optical signal reveals a trade-off between the increase in coercivity and the reduction of the magneto-optical signal as the Cu buffer layer grows. Adding a second Co/Pt repetition mitigates this limitation, yielding samples with both strong magneto-optical signals and high coercivities, featuring the largest effective anisotropy. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-affcec66e1c94049a77a758ea475b8ce |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2166-532X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | AIP Publishing LLC |
| record_format | Article |
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| spelling | doaj-art-affcec66e1c94049a77a758ea475b8ce2025-08-20T02:37:33ZengAIP Publishing LLCAPL Materials2166-532X2025-06-01136061110061110-910.1063/5.0274706Enhancing perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and magneto-optical signal of electron beam evaporated [Co/Pt]1 and [Co/Pt]2 thin filmsD. Doménech0A. Villar1C. Redondo2N. A. Río-López3J. M. Porro4R. Morales5BCMaterials, Basque Center for Materials, Applications and Nanostructures, 48940 Leioa, SpainBCMaterials, Basque Center for Materials, Applications and Nanostructures, 48940 Leioa, SpainDepartment of Physical Chemistry, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, 48940 Leioa, SpainBCMaterials, Basque Center for Materials, Applications and Nanostructures, 48940 Leioa, SpainBCMaterials, Basque Center for Materials, Applications and Nanostructures, 48940 Leioa, SpainBCMaterials, Basque Center for Materials, Applications and Nanostructures, 48940 Leioa, SpainNanostructured magnetic multilayers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) are interesting materials for a plethora of magneto-optical and spintronic applications. The search for PMA in these heterostructures is commonly pursued by employing magnetron sputtering under ultra-high vacuum conditions and stacking a large number of layer repetitions. This work introduces a straightforward approach for Co/Pt ultra-thin film growth using electron beam evaporation under lower demanding vacuum conditions—i.e., base pressures around 10−6 mbar—achieving a high degree of PMA and tunable magnetic properties with only one repetition of the magnetic material. The non-conformal deposition geometry of this technique ensures compatibility with micro- and nanofabrication. A Cu buffer layer promotes strong PMA, as it enhances the (111) texture growth of the Co/Pt stack under high vacuum conditions. The control of the Cu and Pt thicknesses allows to fine-tune coercivities across a wide range of magnetic fields while maintaining a well-defined out-of-plane loop squareness and a sharp transition between the two perpendicular states. The influence of the Cu layer on the magneto-optical signal reveals a trade-off between the increase in coercivity and the reduction of the magneto-optical signal as the Cu buffer layer grows. Adding a second Co/Pt repetition mitigates this limitation, yielding samples with both strong magneto-optical signals and high coercivities, featuring the largest effective anisotropy.http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/5.0274706 |
| spellingShingle | D. Doménech A. Villar C. Redondo N. A. Río-López J. M. Porro R. Morales Enhancing perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and magneto-optical signal of electron beam evaporated [Co/Pt]1 and [Co/Pt]2 thin films APL Materials |
| title | Enhancing perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and magneto-optical signal of electron beam evaporated [Co/Pt]1 and [Co/Pt]2 thin films |
| title_full | Enhancing perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and magneto-optical signal of electron beam evaporated [Co/Pt]1 and [Co/Pt]2 thin films |
| title_fullStr | Enhancing perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and magneto-optical signal of electron beam evaporated [Co/Pt]1 and [Co/Pt]2 thin films |
| title_full_unstemmed | Enhancing perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and magneto-optical signal of electron beam evaporated [Co/Pt]1 and [Co/Pt]2 thin films |
| title_short | Enhancing perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and magneto-optical signal of electron beam evaporated [Co/Pt]1 and [Co/Pt]2 thin films |
| title_sort | enhancing perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and magneto optical signal of electron beam evaporated co pt 1 and co pt 2 thin films |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/5.0274706 |
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