Optical and magnetic properties of (Ga1-xMnx)N/GaN digital ferromagnetic heterostructures

(Ga1-xMnx)N/GaN digital ferromagnetic heterostructures (DFHs) and (Ga1-xMnx)N/GaN grown on GaN buffer layers by using molecular beam epitaxy have been investigated. The photoluminescence (PL) spectra showed band-edge exciton transitions. They also showed peaks corresponding to the neutral donor-bound exciton and the exciton transitions between the conduction band and the Mn acceptor, indicative of the Mn atoms acting as substitution. The magnetization curves as functions of the magnetic field at 5 K indicated that the saturation magnetic moment in the (Ga1-xMnx)N/GaN DFHs decreased with increasing Mn mole fraction and that the saturation magnetic moment and the coercive field in the (Ga1-xMnx)N/GaN DFHs were much larger than those in (Ga1-xMnx)N thin films. These results indicate that the (Ga1-xMnx)N/GaN DFHs hold promise for potential applications in spintronic devices. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.