Low-rate sputter-deposited Fe3Si thin films on Si substrates: structural and ferromagnetic properties.

Fe3Si thin films were sputter-deposited on Si(001) substrates. Structural investigations show that Fe3Si was deposited poly-crystalline with a Si-containing layer at the Fe3Si/Si interface. The formation of the layer was attributed to the influence of low deposition rates used in this study on the grain nucleation in Fe3Si. This layer helps to stabilize the ferromagnetic properties of the subsequent annealed films at 350 degrees C with 5 Oe obtained for coercive field H(c), approximately 920 emu/cm3 for saturation magnetization M(s) and approximately 0.9M(s) for remnant magnetization M(r).