Chemical mixing at "Al on Fe" and "Fe on Al" interfaces.

The chemical mixing at the "Al on Fe" and "Fe on Al" interfaces was studied by molecular dynamics simulations of the layer growth and by 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy. The concentration distribution along the layer growth direction was calculated for different crystallographic orientations, and atomically sharp "Al on Fe" interfaces were found when Al grows over (001) and (110) oriented Fe layers. The Al/Fe(111) interface is also narrow as compared to the intermixing found at the "Fe on Al" interfaces for any orientation. Conversion electron Mössbauer measurements of trilayers—Al/57Fe/Al and Al/57Fe/Ag grown simultaneously over Si(111) substrate by vacuum evaporation—support the results of the molecular dynamics calculations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]