Nd-Co人工格子薄膜の磁性

抄録

A series of compositionally modulated Nd-Co thin films was prepared by UHV evaporation. The modulated structure and composition of the films were studied by X-ray diffraction measurement and energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis, respectively. Magnetization and anisotropy measurements were carried out using a vibrating sample magnetometer in the temperature range between 77 K and room temperature. A coherent structure was found over the modulation length, Λ, range 20 Å ≤ Λ ≤ 70 Å. The magnetization of the films with an atomic ratio of Nd : Co=1 : 3 changed slightly with Λ, but the perpendicular anisotropy energy decreased significantly with increasing Λ. The reduction of the anisotropy energy seems to be due to a decrease in the amount of atoms which are adjacent to the interfaces between Nd and Co layers.