CORRELATION OF STRUCTURE MICROMAGNETIC CHARACTER OF RF-SPUTTERED CO/CR, COCR/CR AND COCRTA/CR THIN-FILMS

The correlation of the structure/property/micromagnetic character of sputtered Co/Cr, CoCr/Cr and CoCrTa/Cr thin films has been investigated. The initial susceptibility and coercivity of the films were found to vary in a reciprocal manner. Fresnel mode Lorentz TEM revealed a simultaneous decrease in initial susceptibility and increase in the coercivity correlated with increased complexity and refinement of the micromagnetic images. Such behavior may be attributed to induced fluctuations in local energy within the samples. The local energy fluctuations have a significant effect on the magnetic properties and micromagnetic character of the films such that they are correlated in a manner that associates lower initial susceptibility and higher coercivity with more complex and more refined micromagnetic structures.