Influence of the Thickness of Gadolinium Layers on the Magnetic Properties and Magnetization Reversal Processes in Low-Dimensional Co/Gd/Co Systems

Аннотация

Structural and magnetic characteristics and behavior of thin-film Co/Gd/Co systems obtained by ion plasma sputtering in a magnetic field are reported. X-ray studies showed that cobalt layers in all investigated samples have a nanocrystalline structure. The mean roughness Ra of the surface of the samples does not exceed 0.5 nm and is independent of the Gd layer thickness. The shape of hysteresis loops observed for the Co/Gd/Co system depends of the thickness of the Gd layer, t_Gd. The dependence of the saturation field H_S on t_Gd has an oscillatory character. This fact is explained by interaction of the Co layers through the intermediate Gd layer.