Six-fold in-plane magnetic anisotropy in Co-implanted ZnO (0001)

TL;DR

This study reveals a six-fold in-plane magnetic anisotropy in Co-implanted ZnO films, indicating long-range ferromagnetic order due to substitutional cobalt ions, as observed through ferromagnetic resonance measurements.

Contribution

First demonstration of six-fold in-plane magnetic anisotropy in ZnO-based diluted magnetic semiconductors caused by cobalt substitution.

Findings

Six-fold magnetic anisotropy observed via FMR

Anisotropy aligns with ZnO's hexagonal structure

Evidence of long-range ferromagnetic order

Abstract

Magnetic anisotropies of Co-implanted ZnO (0001) films grown on single-crystalline Al2O3 (11-20) substrates have been studied by ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) technique for different cobalt implantation doses. The FMR data show that the easy and hard axes have a periodicity of 60 degrees in the film plane, in agreement with the hexagonal structure of the ZnO films. This six-fold in-plane magnetic anisotropy, which is observed for the first time in ZnO-based diluted magnetic semiconductors, is attributed to the substitution of cobalt on Zn sites in the ZnO structure, and a clear indication for long range ferromagnetic ordering between substitutional cobalt ions in the single-crystalline ZnO films.