Abstract
Electrically charged and neutral clusters whose average sizes ranged from 6 to 16 nm were accelerated and deposited onto the substrate with a bias voltage, Va, using a plasma-gas-condensation cluster deposition system. Fe cluster-assembled films thus obtained have flat and lustrous surfaces, being remarkably prevented from oxidation. With increasing Va, the saturation magnetization, Ms, and packing fraction, P, of these films increase, while the magnetic coercivity, HC, rapidly decreases: Ms = 1.78 Wb/m2, P = 86% of bulk Fe and HC<80 A/m at Va = -20 kV. The electrical resistivity of Fe cluster-assembled film prepared at Va = -20 kV is 0.6-0.8 μΩm (for temperature, T = 20-300 K), which is an order of magnitude larger than that of bulk Fe. These results demonstrate that the dense Fe cluster assembly is a candidate of soft magnetic materials for high frequency uses.
