Preparation and structural properties of thin films and multilayers of the Heusler compounds Cu2MnAl, Co2MnSn, Co2MnSi and Co2MnGe

We report on the preparation of thin films and multilayers of the intermetallic Heusler compound Cu2MnAl, Co2MnSn, Co2MnSi and Co2MnGe by r.f.-sputtering on MgO and Al2O3 substrates. Cu2MnAl can be grown epitaxially with (1 0 0)-orientation on MgO (10 0) and in (I I 0)-orientation on Al2O3 a-plane. The Co-based Heusler alloys need metallic seedlayers to induce high quality textured growth. We also have prepared multilayers with smooth interfaces by combining the Heusler compounds with Au and V. An analysis of the ferromagnetic saturation magnetization of the films indicates that the Cu2MnAl-compound tends to grow in the disordered B2-type structure whereas the Co-based Heusler alloy thin films grow in the ordered L2(1) structure. All multilayers with thin layers of the Heusler compounds exhibit a definitely reduced ferromagnetic magnetization indicating substantial disorder and intermixing at the interfaces. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.