Abstract
Dimensionality effects on epitaxial and polycrystalline Cr1-xRux alloy thin films and in Cr/Cr-Ru heterostructures are reported. X-ray analysis on Cr0.9965Ru0.0035 epitaxial films indicates an increase in the coherence length in growth directions (1 0 0) and (1 1 0) with increasing thickness (d), in the range 20≤d≤300 nm. Atomic force microscopy studies on these films shows pronounced vertical growth for d>50 nm, resulting in the formation of columnar structures. The Néel temperatures (TN) of the Cr0.9965Ru0.0035 films show anomalous behaviour as a function of d at thickness d≈50 nm. It is interesting to note that this thickness corresponds to that for which a change in film morphology occurs. Experiments on epitaxial Cr1-xRux thin films, with 0≤x≤0.013 and d=50 nm, give TN-x curves that correspond well with that of bulk Cr1-xRux alloys. Studies on Cr/Cr0.9965Ru0.0035 superlattices prepared on MgO(1 0 0), with the Cr layer thickness varied between 10 and 50 nm, keeping the Cr0.9965Ru0.0035 thickness constant at 10 nm, indicate a sharp decrease in TN as the Cr separation layers reaches a thickness of 30 nm; ascribed to spin density wave pinning in the Cr layers for d<30 nm by the adjacent CrRu layers.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1126-1129 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials |
Volume | 322 |
Issue number | 9-12 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - May 2010 |
Keywords
- Cr alloy
- Electrical resistivity
- Epitaxial thin film
- Heterostructure
- Spin density wave
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
- Condensed Matter Physics