Influence of Mo content on magnetic properties of GdCoMo amorphous thin films

Abstract

The influence of the Mo content in (Gd1?xCox)1?yMoy thin amorphous films was studied. Samples were prepared by the rf sputtering technique with x from 0.66 to 0.97 and y from 0.01 to 0.14. It was found that molybdenum influences the saturation magnetization, the g-factor and the uniaxial anisotropy field. Also surface modes in spin wave resonance in thin films (Gd1?xCox)1?yMoy x = 0.85?0.94, y = 0.01?0.12 were studied. The surface anisotropy constant was determined from the surface inhomogeneity (SI) model [1]. The fitted Ks values [2] agree with theoretically predicted ones. For some of our samples the best fit between model and experimental data was obtained when the surface anisotropy energy was assumed as a superposition of the uniaxial anisotropy term and a biaxial anisotropy term. The study of the influence of temperature and Mo content on the value of surface anisotropy constants shows that:

1. i) There is a critical temperature when the surface uniaxial anisotropy constant changes its character;

2. ii) an increasing Mo content makes the temperature dependence of the surface anisotropy constants more stabilized.