Annealing temperature dependence of Ag–Co single layer films on magneto-plasmonic effect

Annealing temperature dependence of the Ag–Co single layer films on the magneto-plasmonic effect was investigated for the future magnetic sensing applications. The findings are as follows; (1) Co grains can be clearly observed in the film annealed at 500 °C in the Ag–Co films, but cannot be observed in the both films as deposited and annealed at 300 °C, (2) all Ag–Co single layer films show magnetic hysteresis curves, (3) saturation field of the Ag–Co films annealed at 300 °C is smallest in the measured samples, and (4) magneto-plasmonic effects of the Ag–Co single layer films as a function of annealing temperature have a local maximum at annealing temperature of 300 °C. These facts imply that the Ag–Co film with Co grains of optimal size for the magneto-plasmonic effect is satisfied both small saturation field and large Co grain density.