Growth, structural and magnetic characterization of Ce and RFe{sub}2 epitaxial ultra-thin films prepared by pulsed laser deposition

摘要

A glance is given at some magnetic properties of epitaxial metallic thin films prepared by Pulsed Laser Deposition. The correlation between growth conditions, structure and magnetic properties is investigated in two examples. In the first one, TbFe2 films exhibit large lattice strains which are strongly coupled to the magnetization giving rise to changes in the magnetic anisotropy. Depending on the growth conditions either in-plane or perpendicular anisotropy is obtained. The second example is devoted to Cerium films. By epitaxy on W(110), γ-Ce(l 11) films can be stabilized in the magnetic phase down to low temperatures, while the bulk transforms into a non magnetic phase α-Ce. The physical properties have been measured for the first time in this regime.