Thin Solid Films, Vol.343-344, 67-70, 1999
Effect of surface roughness on magnetic properties of Fe films deposited by dual ion beam sputtering
The surface morphology and magnetic properties of the Fe films have been investigated in detail by controlling the condition of a dual ion beam sputtering. Fe films have been deposited at the voltage of 1200 V for sputtering. The voltage for Ar bombardment V-A was varied in the range of 80-2000 V with condition that the ratio in the arrival rate of Fe to Ar was 1. The surface morphology and the roughness of the film apparently depended on V-A. The roughness parameter Ra on the film surface was sensitive on V-A, and was in the range between 0.5 and 15 nm. The saturation magnetization 4 pi Ms and the coercivity H-C of the Fe films were varied in the ranges of 15-21.5 kG and 2.5-18 Oe, respectively. The him with the minimum Ra exhibited the highest 4 pi Ms and the lowest H-C. This suggests that the surface roughness of the films significantly influences the growth of the deposited films. Consequently, it was found that the surface roughness strongly affected the magnetic properties in the Fe films.