Stripe domains in Fe-Zr-N nanocrystalline films

We report on the transition between a magnetic stripe domain structure and in-plane orientation of the spins, as a function of nitrogen content, for 500 nm thick Fe–Zr–N films prepared by DC reactive sputtering on glass substrates. The saturation field decreases and the saturation magnetization increases with decreasing nitrogen content. For 4 at% N, the magnetic behavior of the films becomes specific for a soft magnetic material. The magnetic spin distribution was investigated by transmission Mössbauer spectroscopy (TMS) to probe the entire sample and Magnetic Force Microscopy to image the surface