First-principles investigations of the magnetocrystalline anisotropy in strained Co-substituted magnetite (CoFe2O4)

The magnetocrystalline anisotropy energy of CoFe2O4 under uniaxial strain along [0 0 1] direction has been studied by using the linear muffin-tin orbital method within the density functional theory. The calculated uniaxial anisotropy constant Kout is positive for extensive in-plane (0 0 1) strains and is negative for compressive in-plane strains. The positive value of Kout indicates that a CoFe2O4 film under an extensive in-plane strain would show the out-of-plane [0 0 1] magnetization