Structural and Magnetic Properties of FeNi Films and FeNi-Based Trilayers with Out-of-Plane Magnetization Component

Abstract

FeNi films of different thickness and FeNi/(Fe, Co)/FeNi trilayers were prepared by magnetron sputtering deposition onto glass substrates. The permalloy films had a columnar microstructure. The detailed analysis of the magnetic properties based on the magnetic and magneto-optical measurements showed that at thicknesses exceeding a certain critical thickness, hysteresis loops acquire a specific shape and the coercive force of the films increase sharply. The possibility of the estimation of the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy constant using the Murayama equation for the thickness dependence of saturation field was demonstrated. The results of studies of the structural and magnetic properties of FeNi films laminated by Fe and Co spacers with different thickness are presented.

Keywords

• magnetic field sensors
• permalloy
• crystal structure
• perpendicular magnetic anisotropy
• stripe domains
• “transcritical” state