Abstract
The structure and thermomagnetic properties of pulsed laser deposited polycrystalline Ni-Mn-Ga alloy films, grown onto thermally oxidized Si(100) wafers, have been investigated. The 300-nm-thick films were deposited at substrate temperatures between 500 and 600 degreesC from targets made from slices of a Ni2MnGa single crystal. The trends in the average composition suggest that samples deposited around 500 degreesC are composed of the Ni2MnGa (L2(1)) phase as well as a nonmagnetic B2 phase. On increasing the temperature of the substrate, the Mn content as well as the saturation magnetization increase suggesting the appearance of a different magnetic phase that is tentatively ascribed to the Ni-3(MnGa) (L1(1)) magnetic phase.