Thin film MnGe grown on Si(111)

MnGe has been grown as a thin film on Si(111) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy. A 10 Å layer of MnSi was used as the seed layer in order to establish the B20 crystal structure. Films of a thickness between 45 and 135 Å have been prepared and structurally characterized using reflection high-energy electron diffraction, atomic force microscopy and x-ray diffraction. These studies provided evidence that MnGe forms in the cubic B20 crystal structure as islands exhibit a very smooth surface. The islands become larger with increasing film thickness. A magnetic characterization reveals that the ordering temperature of MnGe thin films is enhanced compared to that for bulk material. The properties of the helical magnetic structure obtained from magnetization and magnetoresistivity measurements are compared with those of films of the related compound MnSi. The much stronger Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction in MnGe results in a higher rigidity of the spin helix.