Epitaxial Fe films on GaAs for hybrid semiconductor-magnetic memories

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Abstract
The magnetic and structural properties of Fe films deposited by ion-beam sputtering (IBS) on (100)-oriented GaAs substrates are described. The films are between 30 and 600 nm thick and are characterized by a coercive field of approximately 3–6 Oe. The saturation magnetization and anisotropy field, inferred from vibrating sample magnetometer measurements agree substantially with the values expected for bulk Fe. Films deposited on the (100) substrate show the expected fourfold (or ‘‘biaxial’’) symmetry with no indication of a uniaxial anisotropy component. These properties make the films ideally suitable for the intended application in a hybrid semiconductor-magnetic memory, in which two magnetic remanent states with mutually orthogonal magnetization directions interact with an electronic flip-flop circuit.