The influence of the geometry of micro-patterned thin films on the effective permeability and resonance frequency by domains development

For the application in high-frequency micromagnetic devices, the permeability and resonance frequency of ferromagnetic components is of high interest. It is dominantly influenced by different factors, the external field and direction and the domain distribution, shape and orientation. By the use of micromagnetic simulation, the domain pattern in films was determined and the effective permeability was calculated. The results of the calculations were compared with the domain shape of patterned microstructures of thin FeCoTaN-films, which were deposited onto oxidised silicon substrates by reactive r.f.-magnetron sputtering by employing 6-in Fe37Co46Ta17 targets. To achieve a high-frequency suitability, the films have to be annealed in a static magnetic field of 50 mT between 400 and 500 °C, which are typical temperatures used in CMOS processes, to induce an in-plane uniaxial anisotropy needed for the high-frequency performance. Magnetic softness was obtained by producing amorphous or nanocrystalline films, and additionally, by aspiring low magnetocrystalline anisotropies for, e.g., certain Fe/Co fractions. The unpatterned films with a lateral dimension of 5×5 mm2 were measured in a strip line permeameter in a frequency range up to 5 GHz and exhibited ferromagnetic resonance frequencies between 2 and 2.5 GHz within a low-loss permeability spectrum (low width of imaginary part of permeability). For possible integrations in passive microelectronic components the films were patterned to a few tenths of micrometers by near ultra-violet lithography and plasma beam etching, and then consequently annealed to obtain the static and dynamic magnetic properties. To influence the amount of closure domains, designs were conceived to influence the domain formation by creating additional internal boundaries. As a result, the ferromagnetic resonance frequency and the effective permeability are strongly driven by internal and external boundaries.