Abstract
We report a direct observation of giant saturation magnetization in Fe 16N2. By exploiting thin film epitaxy, which provides controlled biaxial stress to create lattice distortion, we demonstrate that giant magnetism can be established in Fe16N2 thin film coherently grown on MgO (001) substrate. Explored by polarized neutron reflectometry, the depth-dependent saturation magnetic induction (Bs) of epitaxial Fe16N2 thin films is visualized, which reveals a strong correlation with the in-plane lattice parameter and tensile strain developed at near substrate interface. With controlled growth process and dimension adjustment, the Bs of these films can be modulated over a broad range, from ∼2.1 Tesla (T) (normal Bs) up to ∼3.1 T (giant Bs).
Original language | English |
---|---|
Article number | 072411 |
Journal | Applied Physics Letters |
Volume | 102 |
Issue number | 7 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Feb 18 2013 |
Externally published | Yes |
Funding
The PNR work done at SNS, ORNL, and the work done at UMN were sponsored by U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences under Grant No. DE-AC02-98CH10886. The authors would like to thank Professor J. Judy, Professor R. H. Victora, Professor C. Leighton, Professor P. Crowell, and Professor B. I. Shklovskii for helpful discussion.