Growth of L1-ordered crystal in FePt and FePd thin films on MgO(001) substrate

Formation of L10-oredered structure from disordered A1 phase has been investigated for FePt and FePd films on MgO(001) substrates employing a two-step method consisting of low temperature deposition at 200 °C followed by high-temperature annealing at 600 °C. L10-(001) variant crystal with the c-axis perpendicular to the substrate grows preferentially in FePd films whereas L10-(100), (010) variants tend to be mixed with the L10-(001) variant in FePt films. The structure analysis by X-ray diffraction indicates that a difference in A1 lattice strain is the influential factor that determines the resulting L10-variant structure in ordered thin films. Misfit dislocations and anti-phase boundaries are observed in high-resolution transmission electron micrographs of 10 nm-thick Fe(Pt, Pd) film consisting of L10-(001) variants which are formed through atomic diffusion at 600 °C in a laterally strained FePt/PeFd epitaxial thin film. Based on the experimental results, a nucleation and growth model for explaining L10-variant formation is proposed, which suggests a possibility in tailoring the L10 variant structure in ordered magnetic thin films by controlling the alloy composition, the layer structure, and the substrate material.