Electron-beam evaporated cobalt films on molecular beam epitaxy prepared GaAs(001)

TL;DR

This study investigates the deposition of cobalt films on GaAs(001) surfaces via e-beam evaporation, analyzing their structural and magnetic properties, and how these properties change with film thickness and surface roughness.

Contribution

It provides experimental data on the magnetic and structural properties of Co films on GaAs(001), highlighting the effects of film thickness and surface roughness on magnetization.

Findings

Magnetization decreases with increasing film thickness.

Surface roughness impacts magnetic property degradation.

X-ray reflectivity and RBS effectively measure film thickness.

Abstract

We have deposited Co films on the GaAs(001) surface by using an e-beam evaporation method. The thicknesses of the Co films are measured by using x-ray reflectivity and Rutherford backscattering. The magnetic properties of the films have been measured using superconducting quantum interference device. The magnetization of the films was found to decrease with increasing film thickness. The slight degradation of magnetic properties is attributed to increasing roughness on the Co surface or the Co/GaAs interface during the Co deposition.