Influence of the Finite-size Effects on the Curie Temperature of L10-FePt

TL;DR

This study uses an atomistic model to analyze how finite-size and surface effects influence the Curie temperature of L10-FePt grains, revealing a size threshold and surface bond loss impact relevant for heat-assisted magnetic recording.

Contribution

It introduces a detailed atomistic approach to quantify finite-size and surface effects on the Curie temperature of L10-FePt, applicable to generic magnetic systems.

Findings

Existence of a 3.5nm size threshold affecting Curie temperature

Correlation between surface bond loss and Curie temperature reduction

Finite-size effects contribute to Curie temperature dispersion in HAMR

Abstract

We employ an atomistic model using a nearest-neighbor Heisenberg Hamiltonian exchange to study computationally the dependence of the Curie temperature of L10-FePt on finite-size and surface effects in Heat-assisted Magnetic Recording (HAMR) media. We demonstrate the existence of a size threshold at 3.5nm below which the impact of finite-size effects start to permeate into the center of the grains and contribute to the reduction of the Curie temperature. We find a correlation between the Curie temperature and the percentage of atomistic bonds lost on the surface as a function of grain size, which can be extended to apply to not only L10-FePt but also generic magnetic systems of any crystal structure. The investigation gives insight into finite-size effects which, because the inevitable grain size dispersion leads to an irreducible contribution to a dispersion of the Curie temperature, has been predicted to be a serious limitation of HAMR.