Roles of nanocrystal interfaces on L10 ordering phase transitions in FePt thin films

▶ We demonstrate that the increase of nanocrystal interfaces in as-deposited FePt thin films enhances the nucleation rate of L10 ordered domains and simultaneously inhibits their growth during the L10 ordering phase transition in the thin films. ▶ The enhanced nucleation rate leads to an accelerated L10 ordering process for the thin films. ▶ The L10-FePt thin films with small grain and ordered domain sizes are successfully yielded by interface engineering.