Mossbauer investigation of Fe1-xCrx films grown by ion-beam sputter deposition

Fe1-xCrx (0 < x < 0.70) films, 220nm thick, on Si and fused-SiO2 substrates were prepared using ion-beam sputter deposition, and their structural properties were determined by Fe-57 conversion electron Mossbauer spectroscopy (CEMS) and X-ray diffraction experiments (XRD) at room temperature. CEM spectra show magnetic ordering for 0 < x <= 0.28, and the BCC alpha-phase is evidenced through XRD diagrams in all cases. The general trend for the films is that the average hyperfine magnetic field (HMF) values are lower compared to bulk counterparts. Moreover, a parabolic change in average HMF with Cr content x could be established. For 0.32 <= x < 0.70, the CEM spectra exhibit a pseudo-single line, which denotes paramagnetic state. Between x=0.32 and x=0.38, there exists a multiphase region where the alloys mainly consist of alpha and delta (A15-type) phases. Then, in the concentration range x=0.38-0.58, the films only display the metastable delta-phase. For 0.58 <= x <= 0.66, there appears a new transition region where alpha- and delta-phases coexist. Finally, the domain of the paramagnetic alpha-phase alone stretches from x=0.66 to at least x=0.70. Emphasis is placed on the metastable delta-phase which appears over a wide monophase region. Particularly, the site occupancy could be determined through the CEM spectrum for x=0.49. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.