Crossover to striped magnetic domains in Fe1-xGax magnetostrictive thin films
Résumé
We have studied the magnetic properties at room temperature of Fe1-xGax (FeGa) epitaxial thin films grown on ZnSe/GaAs(100) for 0: 14 <= x <= 0.29 range concentration, and film thicknesses, d = 36 and 72 nm. The study was performed by means of magnetometric measurements and magnetic force microscopy scans. Increasing x promotes the loss of the four-fold magnetic-crystalline anisotropy associated to an Fe-like behavior, which is lost completely above x = 0.20. Stripe domains with rotatable anisotropy are observed even in samples in which the theoretical conditions for stripe appearance are not completely fulfilled. An unexpected ``saw-tooth'' stripe structure has been found under certain conditions. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4748122]