Effect of initial stress/strain state on formation of (001) preferred orientation inL10FePt thin films

The stress state of FePt thin films deposited at room temperature was controlled within the range from 1.01 GPa compressive to 0.18 GPa tensile before taking rapid thermal annealing (RTA). After the order–disorder transformation triggered by RTA at temperatures (Ta) from 650 to 800 °C for 5 min, the tensile-stressed films exhibit significant preferred orientation of (001) of L10 structure. However, the compressive-strained ones show isotropic texture. Strong (001) texture with high Lotgering orientation factor of 0.9 is obtained at Ta = 800 °C, resulting in enhanced perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. The results provide direct evidence of stress-induced (001) texture, which could be significant for future applications.