MAGNETIC-PROPERTIES OF ION-BEAM SPUTTER-DEPOSITED NIFE ULTRATHIN FILMS

Studies have been made of the magnetic properties of NiFe ultrathin films 15-100 Angstrom thick. The NiFe films were deposited on Cu, Ti, and Ta underlayers by an ion-beam sputtering method. In the NiFe films deposited on the Cu layers, the saturation magnetization shows Little change with thickness down to 60 Angstrom, but below this it shows a gradual decrease with decreasing thickness. The coercivity in the hard axis is almost unaltered with the film thickness, whereas the coercivity in the easy axis and the anisotropy field decrease with decreasing film thickness. Both values greatly decrease below 30 Angstrom, Thickness dependence of the induced uniaxial anisotropy constant and the direct-current permeability were obtained from these parameters. Remarkable decreases of these parameters were observed in the films on the Ti and Ta layers likely owing to the formation of fine islands. Magnetic properties and giant magnetoresistance in multilayers are discussed on the basis of the present experimental results. (C) 1995 American Vacuum Society.