Annealing Condition Effects on the Structural Properties of FePt Nanoparticles Embedded in MgO via Pulsed Laser Deposition

FePt nanoparticles (NPs) were embedded into a single-crystal MgO host by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). It was found that its phase, microstructures and physical properties were strongly dependent on annealing conditions. Annealing induced a remarkable morphology variation in order to decrease its total free energy. H-2/Ar (95% Ar + 5% H-2) significantly improved the L1(0) ordering of FePt NPs, making magnetic coercivity reach 37 KOe at room temperature. However, the samples annealing at H-2/Ar, O-2, and vacuum all showed the presence of iron oxide even with the coverage of MgO. MgO matrix could restrain the particles' coalescence effectively but can hardly avoid the oxidation of Fe since it is extremely sensitive to oxygen under the high-temperature annealing process. This study demonstrated that it is essential to anneal FePt in a high-purity reducing or ultra-high vacuum atmosphere in order to eliminate the influence of oxygen.

Automated summary

The study showed that annealing can significantly alter the morphology of FePt nanoparticles and improve their magnetic properties. The annealing in specific atmospheres has important effects on the structure of the nanoparticles and the formation of oxides. The MgO matrix effectively restrains the coalescence of nanoparticles, but cannot completely prevent oxidation.