PhD studentship; Computational models of the structure of magnetic films.

Supervisors; Prof R W Chantrell and Dr M I J Probert

Magnetic thin films form the basis of magnetic storage technology such as hard disc drives. The development of thin films with high magnetocrystalline anisotropy energy (MAE) is necessary for the development of future ultra-high density recording media. One such candidate material is the alloy FePt which has an MAE an order of magnitude larger than current media.

The aim is to develop a Molecular Dynamic model of FePt nanoparticles, which is based on the solution of the equation of motion including a random term representing the thermal forces. The interatomic potential will be calculated using the Embedded Atom Method (EAM), which is a good pseudopotential for metal atoms. The initial aim will be to study small clusters for comparison with ab-initio calculations using the CASTEP package to test the validity of the EAM potential.  The model will be used to study the phase transition in magnetic nanoclusters and to investigate the structure and morphology of the particles. The aim is also to investigate the effects of the nanoparticle dimension and especially to determine the size below which the transition does not occur.

The project is funded by Seagate Technology in Fremont CA and opportunities exist for internships and short visits.

For further information;

Prof. Roy Chantrell roy.chantrell@york.ac.uk

Dr Matt Probert matt.probert@york.ac.uk

You can apply online  .