Effects of platinum content and substrate bias on the structure and magnetic properties of CoCrPt/Cr thin films

The effects of the Pt content (0–40 at. %) and the developed dc substrate bias voltage (0 to −190 V) on the magnetic properties and structure of rf sputtered CoCrPt/Cr films with two different remanent magnetization-thickness products Mrδ (0.7 and 2.3 memu/cm2) were studied. It was demonstrated that a wide range of in-plane coercivities (500–3450 Oe) can be easily obtained in these films. The addition of Pt affected the magnetic properties of the films through changes of the lattice parameter, texture, and phase composition. A maximum in the in-plane coercivity exists for moderate amounts of Pt. The saturation magnetization decreased monotonically with increasing Pt content. rf substrate bias increased the in-plane coercivity and altered the character of the magnetic interactions through changes of the stress, texture and microstructure of the magnetic layer.