Fe3O4GaAs hybrid structures have been studied using reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD), and low-temperature vibrating-sample magnetometry (VSM). The samples were prepared by oxidizing epitaxial Fe thin films in a partial pressure of 5×105mbar of oxygen at 500K for 180s. Clear RHEED patterns were observed, suggesting the epitaxial growth of Fe oxides with a cubic structure. The XPS spectra show that the oxides were Fe3O4 rather than γFe2O3, as there were no shake-up satellites between the two Fe 2p peaks. This was further confirmed by the XMCD measurements, which show ferromagnetic coupling between the Fe cations, with no evidence of intermixing at the interface. The VSM measurements show that the films have a magnetic uniaxial anisotropy and a “quick” saturation property, with the easy axes along the [01¯1] direction. This detailed study offers further insight into the structure, interface, and magnetic properties of this hybrid Fe3O4GaAs(100) structure as a promising system for spintronic application.

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