Magnetic Properties of Metastable Fe-Al Alloys Produced by Vapor Quenching

Fe-Al alloys were prepared by the standard RF sputtering method (vapor quenching), their compositions were determined by EPMA, X-ray diffraction and Mössbauer effect analyses were performed, and film magnetic properties were measured. Sputtered alloys were in a nearly complete state of disorder. At higher Al concentrations, an amorphous phase appeared, and marked deviation from the simple dilution law governing the composition dependence of the magnetization was observed. The Mössbauer spectra of sputtered bcc films suggested the existence of a magnetic perpendicular anisotropy.