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arXiv · 1506.05357

Structure of Fe3Si/Al/Fe3Si thin film stacks on GaAs(001)

Bernd Jenichen·Uwe Jahn·Andrei Nikulin·Jens Herfort·Holm Kirmse
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Abstract

Fe3Si/Al/Fe3Si/GaAs(001) structures were deposited by molecular-beam epitaxy and characterized by transmission and scanning electron microscopy, and x-ray diffraction. The first Fe3Si film on GaAs(001) is growing epitaxially as (001) oriented single crystal. The subsequent Al film grows almost 111 oriented in a fibre texture although the underlying Fe3Si is exactly (001) oriented. The growth in this orientation is triggered by a thin transition region which is formed at the Fe3Si/Al interface. In the end after the growth of the second Fe3Si layer on top of the Al the final properties of the whole stack depend on the substrate temperature T_S during deposition of the last film. The upper Fe3Si films are mainly 110 oriented although they are poly-crystalline. At lower T_S, around room temperature, all the films retain their original structural properties.

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Bernd Jenichen, Uwe Jahn, Andrei Nikulin, Jens Herfort, Holm Kirmse. 2015-07-10. Structure of Fe3Si/Al/Fe3Si thin film stacks on GaAs(001). https://doi.org/10.1088/0268-1242%2F30%2F11%2F114005

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