Synthesis of Nd-Fe-B thin films with high coercive force by cosputtering

NdFeB thin films were prepared by cosputtering of the individual elements and the magnetic properties were studied as a function of the concentration of Nd and B in the Alms. The dependence of coercive force, saturation magnetization and the energy product (B(r)xH(c)) on the composition are presented by three dimensional diagrams. High coercive force and high energy product was observed at Nd concentrations slightly higher than the stoichiometric composition. For a fixed composition, a dependence of coercive force as a function of thickness of the film was observed. The microstructure of the films also showed a variation as a function of thickness.