Exchange-bias via nanosegregation in novel Fe_2-x Mn_1+x Al (x = -0.25, 0, 0.25) Heusler films.

ABSTRACT: Exchange-bias has been reported in bulk nanocrystalline Fe₂MnAl, but individual thin films of this Heusler alloy have never been studied so far. Here we study the structural and magnetic properties of nanocrystalline thin films of Fe_2-x Mn_1+x Al (x = -0.25, 0 and 0.25) obtained by sputtering and ex situ post-deposition annealing. We find that Fe₂MnAl films display exchange-bias, and that varying Mn concentration determines the magnitude of the effect, which can be either enhanced (in Fe_1.75Mn_1.25Al) or suppressed (in Fe_2.25Mn_0.75Al). X-ray diffraction shows that our films present a mixed L2₁-B2 Heusler structure where increasing Mn concentration favors the partial

SUBMITTER: Kurdi S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9417214 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature