Structural and Magnetic Properties of Amorphous and Nanocrystalline CoFeSiB Thin Films

This study examined the structural, magnetic, and transport properties of CoFeSiB films with various Co compositions. The main focus was on two samples, amorphous Co
₇₄
Fe
₄
Si
₁₄
B
₈
and nanocrystalline Co
₇₈
Fe
₂
Si
₁₂
B
₈
thin films. The results show that the amorphous film is a typical soft magnetic material, while the nanocrystalline film has a large saturation field. It is believed that in a nanocrystalline thin film, a large saturation field is caused by antiferromagnetic exchange at the boundary between the amorphous and nanocrystalline phases.