Fabrication of highly ordered Co 2 Fe 0.4 Mn 0.6 Si Heusler alloy films on Si substrates

The structural and magnetic properties of Si(100)/MgO/Co 2 Fe 0.4 Mn 0.6 Si (CFMS) Heusler alloy thin films were systematically investigated. Highly B2-ordered CFMS Heusler films with an ordering parameter of ca. 70–80% were obtained by both the insertion of a very thin Mg layer into the Si/MgO interfaces to prevent oxidation of the Si surface and the optimization of the annealing temperature for the CFMS films. The prepared CFMS films exhibited high magnetization close to that of the CFMS bulk. Such highly B2-ordered CFMS films are very useful for realizing high spin injection efficiency in Si because of the half-metallicity of the CFMS films.