Eur. Phys. J. Appl. Phys. 87, 21301 (2019)
https://doi.org/10.1051/epjap/2019190131

Regular Article

A study of multilayer nanostructures [(Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀)₃₅(Al₂O₃)₆₅/a-Si:H]₁₀₀ and [(Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀)₃₅(Al₂O₃)₆₅/a-Si]₁₂₀ by means of XRD, XRR, IR spectroscopy, and USXES

¹ Voronezh State University, 394018 Voronezh, Russia
² Voronezh State Technical University, 394026 Voronezh, Russia

^* e-mail: tangar77@mail.ru

Received: 16 April 2019
Received in final form: 5 June 2019
Accepted: 14 August 2019
Published online: 27 September 2019

Abstract

Interatomic interactions and superstructures of multilayer nanostructures (MLNS) consisting of ferromagnetic composite layers and silicon interlayers with or without hydrogen are studied here by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray reflectivity (XRR), IR spectroscopy, and ultra-soft X-ray emission spectroscopy (USXES). The MLNS [(Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀)₃₅(Al₂O₃)₆₅/a-Si:H]₁₀₀ and [(Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀)₃₅(Al₂O₃)₆₅/a-Si]₁₂₀ were deposited on the substrate Si(100) by ion-beam sputtering of two targets, where the first target was a plate of Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀ alloy with Al₂O₃ inserts, and the second target was a single-crystal silicon. Our results show that the iron (FeSi₂) and cobalt (CoSi, CoSi₂) silicides are formed at the interfaces of the composite metal-containing layer/silicon interlayer. It is demonstrated that the metal clusters of composite layers and interface silicides are partially oxidized to form iron, cobalt, and silicon oxides together with zirconium silicate. Due to the formation of silicides at the interfaces, the composition of MLNS superstructures becomes more complex, and their periods are significantly reduced (down to 5–6 nm) compared to the nominal values of bilayers of about 6.9 nm.