Epitaxial growth of the cubic L21-Mn2.6Ga Heusler alloy on MgO(001)

The Mn3Ga Heusler alloy possesses different crystalline structures representing a range of properties of interest for spintronic applications. We report on the structural and magnetic characterization of the disordered cubic-fcc L21-Mn2.6Ga thin films grown on MgO(001) substrates. The first two nano...

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Veröffentlicht in:Applied physics letters 2020-03, Vol.116 (13)
Hauptverfasser: Gutiérrez-Pérez, Rocío M., Holguín-Momaca, José T., Tian, Guo, Ojha, Shuchi Sunil, López Antón, Ricardo, Ross, Caroline A., Olive-Méndez, Sion F.
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Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:The Mn3Ga Heusler alloy possesses different crystalline structures representing a range of properties of interest for spintronic applications. We report on the structural and magnetic characterization of the disordered cubic-fcc L21-Mn2.6Ga thin films grown on MgO(001) substrates. The first two nanometers of thickness of the Mn2.6Ga thin films are highly strained to the substrate with a lattice mismatch of 9.54%, playing the role of a template layer for the subsequent growth of relaxed L21-Mn2.6Ga. Once the films reach a critical thickness of 15 nm, the cubic phase reorients its epitaxial relationship from a (001) to a (111) in-plane orientation. Magnetic measurements show that the samples exhibit perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and also that the usually antiferromagnetic L21-Mn3Ga films are ferromagnetic with a Curie temperature >400 K due to partially compensated Mn moments.
ISSN:0003-6951
1077-3118
DOI:10.1063/5.0001349