Dresden 2006 – scientific programme

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MA: Magnetismus

MA 29: Magnetic Thin Films IV

MA 29.2: Talk

Thursday, March 30, 2006, 15:30–15:45, HSZ 03

Magnetic coupling in Gd/Ni-layered films — •Alexander Barth¹, Frank Treubel¹, Jacek Jaworski², Marta Marszalek², Manfred Albrecht¹, and Günter Schatz¹ — ¹Universität Konstanz, Fachbereich Physik, Konstanz — ²The H. Niewodniczanski Institute of Nuclear Physics, Krakau

In this study the magnetic interaction of the rare earth metal Gadolinium and the transition metal Nickel was examined. In the first approach the materials were deposited under UHV conditions onto sapphire and silicon nitride substrates. In order to investigate the coupling mechanism of the two layers the Nickel thickness was varied. Then measurements by SQUID and XMCD were used to resolve magnetic properties. The structure was examined by XRD and MEED and the composition during evaporation by AUGER-spectroscopy. Due to the huge size of the Gd-atoms and their thereby low mobility on the substrate surface the layer grows amorphous from the first monolayer on. In order to suppress interdiffusion with the Ni-layer the sample was cooled to -175^∘C. But still a strong tendency to intermixing could be observed on sapphire but not on the silicon nitride. The system shows a variety of magnetic coupling phenomena between the two layers with a strong temperature dependence due to an amorphous Gd/Ni-alloy forming inbetween.