Soft magnetism, magnetostriction and microwave properties of FeGaB thin films

Jing Lou, Northeastern University - Center for Microwave Magnetic Materials and Integrated Circuits
R. E. Insignares, Northeastern University - Center for Microwave Magnetic Materials and Integrated Circuits
Zhuhua Cai, Northeastern University - Center for Microwave Magnetic Materials and Integrated Circuits
Katherine S. Ziemer, Northeastern University - Dept. of Chemical Engineering
Ming Liu, Northeastern University - Center for Microwave Magnetic Materials and Integrated Circuits
Nian X. Sun, Northeastern University - Center for Microwave Magnetic Materials and Integrated Circuits

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Originally published in Applied Physics Letters, vol.91, no.18, Oct. 2007. doi: 10.1063/1.2804123

Abstract

A series of (Fe_100−yGa_y)_1−xB_x (x=0–21 and y=9–17) films were deposited; their microstructure, soft magnetism, magnetostrictive behavior, and microwave properties were investigated. The addition of B changes the FeGaB films from polycrystalline to amorphous phase and leads to excellent magnetic softness with coercivity <1>Oe, high 4πM_s, self-biased ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) frequency of 1.85 GHz, narrow FMR linewidth (X band) of 16–20 Oe, and a high saturation magnetostriction constant of 70 ppm. The combination of these properties makes the FeGaB films potential candidates for tunable magnetoelectric microwave devices and other rf/microwave magnetic device applications.