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Preparation and structural characterization of sputtered CoO, NiO, and Ni0.5Co0.5O thin epitaxial films

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 January 2011

M.J. Carey
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Center for Magnetic Recording Research 0401, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093–0401
F.E. Spada
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Center for Magnetic Recording Research 0401, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093–0401
A.E. Berkowitz
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Center for Magnetic Recording Research 0401, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093–0401
W. Cao
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Mineral Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
G. Thomas
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Mineral Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
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Abstract

Single phase CoO, NiO, and Ni0.5Co0.5O epitaxial films have been prepared by reactive sputtering onto 〈0001〉 α−Al2O3 substrates maintained at 373 K. Epitaxy was confirmed by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and high resolution electron microscopy (HREM) techniques. XRD experiments indicate that these monoxide films are cubic and contain rotation twins with the twin axis parallel to 〈111〉. Lattice parameters for the CoO and NiO films are 0.4254 ± 0.0001 nm and 0.4173 ± 0.0006 nm, respectively, and agree with published values for the corresponding bulk oxides. The lattice parameter 0.4220 ± 0.0001 nm for the Ni0.5Co0.5O film lies between those of CoO and NiO and suggests that the mixed oxide film is compositionally homogeneous. Cross-sectional HREM images of the Ni0.5Co0.5O specimen show Σ3(12) twin boundaries perpendicular to the oxide-substrate interface. The twin regions are approximately 30 nm in size and are uniformly distributed throughout the film. The epitaxial orientation of the monoxide films with respect to the substrate can be summarized by the relationships [111] monoxide // [0001] α−Al2O3, [10] monoxide // [100] α−Al2O3, and [11] monoxide // [110] α−Al2O3.

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Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1991

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