Published April 2014 | Version v1
Journal article Metadata-only

Using structural disorder to enhance the magnetism and spin-polarization in Fe xSi1 − x thin films for spintronics

Creators

  • 1. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States)
  • 2. Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697 (United States)
  • 3. Materials Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States)
  • 4. Department of Physics, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287 (United States)
  • 5. Advanced Light Source, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States)
  • 6. Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States)

Description

Amorphous Fe xSi1 − x thin films exhibit a striking enhancement in magnetization compared to crystalline films with the same composition (0.45 < x < 0.75), and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism reveals an enhancement in both spin and orbital moments in the amorphous films. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reproduce this enhanced magnetization and also show a relatively large spin-polarization at the Fermi energy, also seen experimentally in Andreev reflection. Theory and experiment show that the amorphous materials have a decreased number of nearest neighbors and reduced number density relative to the crystalline samples of the same composition; the associated decrease in Fe-Si neighbors reduces the hybridization of Fe orbitals, leading to the enhanced moment. (papers)

Availability note (English)

Available from http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/2053-1591/1/2/026102

Additional details

Identifiers

DOI
10.1088/2053-1591/1/2/026102;

Publishing Information

Journal Title
Materials Research Express (Online)
Journal Volume
1
Journal Issue
2
Journal Page Range
[9 p.]
ISSN
2053-1591

INIS

Country of Publication
United Kingdom
Country of Input or Organization
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
INIS RN
47048026
Subject category
S36: MATERIALS SCIENCE;
Descriptors DEI
AMORPHOUS STATE; COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS; DENSITY; DENSITY FUNCTIONAL METHOD; FERMI LEVEL; IRON SILICIDES; MAGNETIC CIRCULAR DICHROISM; MAGNETISM; MAGNETIZATION; REFLECTION; SPIN; SPIN ORIENTATION; THIN FILMS; X RADIATION
Descriptors DEC
ANGULAR MOMENTUM; CALCULATION METHODS; DICHROISM; ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION; ENERGY LEVELS; EVALUATION; FILMS; IONIZING RADIATIONS; IRON COMPOUNDS; ORIENTATION; PARTICLE PROPERTIES; PHYSICAL PROPERTIES; RADIATIONS; SILICIDES; SILICON COMPOUNDS; TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS; VARIATIONAL METHODS