Dependence of magnetostriction of sputtered Tb-Fe films on preparation conditions

Amorphous Tb-Fe thin films prepared by the sputtering method in the compositional range Tb/sub x/Fe/sub 1-x/ (x=0-0.5) are investigated in view of their potential for use in electromagnetic thin film actuators. The magnetostriction and the coercive force for the Tb-Fe films are examined for different sputtering conditions to obtain both soft magnetic properties and large magnetostriction in this system. As a result, Tb-Fe thin films having large magnetostrictions (180*10/sup -6/ at 1 kOe) and low coercive force (60-70 Oe) are obtained. These films are prepared under the conditions of the composition of 45-50 at.% Tb, Ar gas pressure of 4 mTorr, RF input power of 200 W and using water cooled substrates. A trial actuator using magnetostrictive thin films is also reported. >