Epitaxial growth, perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, and domain structure of Co/Pt(311) and (111) multilayers

Abstract

We have simultaneously grown $[\mathrm{Co}(t\AA{})/\mathrm{Pt}(10\AA{}){]}_{30}$ $(t=2--10\AA{})$ multilayers on Pt(311) and Pt(111) planes by molecular beam epitaxy. The Pt(311) and Pt(111) seeding layers were prepared on ${\mathrm{Mo}(211)/\mathrm{A}\mathrm{l}}_{2}{\mathrm{O}}_{3}(11\ifmmode\bar\else\textasciimacron\fi{}00)$ and ${\mathrm{Mo}(110)/\mathrm{A}\mathrm{l}}_{2}{\mathrm{O}}_{3}(112\ifmmode\bar\else\textasciimacron\fi{}0),$ respectively. New epitaxial relations between Pt and Mo layers in both cases are established by electron and x-ray diffraction. The Co/Pt multilayers on Pt(311) were grown mainly as a (311) structure but mixed with a small amount of (211) phase. The Co/Pt(311) multilayers display large perpendicular magnetic anisotropy with results comparable to those of the (111) samples. In addition, the Co/Pt(311) multilayers exhibit stripelike magnetic domain structure with domain displacement growing along the [01\ifmmode\bar\else\textasciimacron\fi{}1] azimuth, in marked contrast to the (111) multilayers which show a very irregular domain structure.