Mössbauer Synchrotron and X-ray Studies of Ultrathin YFeO<sub>3</sub> Films
The YFeO<sub>3</sub> orthoferrite is one of the most promising materials for antiferromagnetic (AFM) spintronics. Most studies have dealt with bulk samples, while the thin YFeO<sub>3</sub> films possess unusual and variable properties. Ultrathin (3–50 nm) YFeO<sub>3<...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Magnetism |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-8724/2/4/23 |
| Summary: | The YFeO<sub>3</sub> orthoferrite is one of the most promising materials for antiferromagnetic (AFM) spintronics. Most studies have dealt with bulk samples, while the thin YFeO<sub>3</sub> films possess unusual and variable properties. Ultrathin (3–50 nm) YFeO<sub>3</sub> films have been prepared by magnetron sputtering on the <i>r</i>-plane (<inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><mn>1</mn><mtext> </mtext><mover accent="true"><mn>1</mn><mo>¯</mo></mover><mtext> </mtext><mn>0</mn><mtext> </mtext><mn>2</mn></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>)-oriented Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> substrates (<i>r</i>-Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>). Their characterization was undertaken by the Mössbauer reflectivity method using a Synchrotron Mössbauer Source and by X-ray diffraction (XRD) including grazing incidence diffraction (GI-XRD). For thin films with different thicknesses, the spin reorientation was detected under the application of the magnetic field of up to 3.5 T. Structural investigations revealed a predominant orthorhombic highly textured YFeO<sub>3</sub> phase with (00l) orientation for relatively thick (>10 nm) films. Some inclusions of the Y<sub>3</sub>Fe<sub>5</sub>O<sub>12</sub> garnet (YIG) phase as well as a small amount of the hexagonal YFeO<sub>3</sub> phase were detected in the Mössbauer reflectivity spectra and by XRD. |
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| ISSN: | 2673-8724 |