Title :
Correlation between evolving magnetic and morphological properties in magnetic multilayers
Author :
Doherty, S.A. ; Zhu, J.G. ; Dugas, M. ; Anderson, S. ; Tersteeg, J.
Author_Institution :
Data Storage Syst. Center, Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA, USA
fDate :
7/1/1998 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
The effect of roughness on the magnetic properties of RF sputtered, thin film multilayers of NiFe, Cu, Co (CoFe) is described. The mean roughness (Ra), measured via atomic force microscopy, is shown to increase linearly with the number of layers. The Ra of 0.43 nm for a single trilayer increased to 1.53 nm for a stack of ten trilayers. Similarly, the saturation field increased as the number of layers increased. The saturation field of 45 Oe for a single trilayer, increased to 141 Oe for a stack of ten trilayers. For the NiFe/Cu/Co(CoFe) systems studied, the coercivity and saturation field of the individual magnetic layers are shown to be position sensitive properties due to the evolution of roughness through the thickness of the stack
Keywords :
Permalloy; atomic force microscopy; cobalt alloys; coercive force; copper; giant magnetoresistance; iron alloys; magnetic multilayers; sputtered coatings; surface topography; NiFe-Cu-CoFe; RF sputtered thin film; atomic force microscopy; coercivity; giant magnetoresistance; magnetic multilayers; roughness; saturation field; single trilayer; trilayer stack; Atomic force microscopy; Atomic measurements; Force measurement; Magnetic field measurement; Magnetic films; Magnetic multilayers; Magnetic properties; Radio frequency; Saturation magnetization; Sputtering;
Journal_Title :
Magnetics, IEEE Transactions on
