PREPARATION OF HIGHLY ORIENTED THIN-FILM EXHIBITING A MAGNETOOPTICAL EFFECT IN BI, AL DOPED YIG

Substituted yttrium iron garnet (Bi, Al : YIG, BixY3-x AlyFe5-yO12) were prepared by sol-gel process. Nitrates of bismuth, aluminium, yttrium and iron were used as the starting materials. The highly oriented thin film was obtained on a substrate of gadolinium gallium garnet (GGG) single crystal. The square type ratio (magnetization of the plane perpendicular to the magnetic field (sigma(s perpendicular-to))/magnetization of the plane parallel to the magnetic field (sigma(s parallel-to))) of the thin film, preferentially oriented in the perpendicular plane as a result of the Al substitution for the iron at the Fe site, exhibited a very large value, greater than 3.5. The Faraday rotation angle (theta(F)) was 50-degrees/mum for the Bi2YAl0.4Fe4.6O12 film.