Surface Catalyzed Photo-Assisted Mocvd of Cobalt Thin Films for Enhanced Control of Magnetic Properties

Abstract

AbstractThin films of cobalt have been deposited by photo-assisted metal-organic chemical vapour deposition. Samples of thickness less than 60 nm, grown at 110 °C, exhibit inverse hysteresis when an external magnetic field is applied in a particular direction normal to the plane of the film. These films are a mixture of crystalline and, possibly, amorphous phases with a grain size of about 130 nm and a significant oxygen content throughout. The potential roles of the various physical characteristics, as well as that of the photolytic deposition process itself, in the origin of the inverse hysteresis are discussed, as is a possible self-limiting growth mechanism.