Elsevier, Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials, (400), p. 262-265, 2016
DOI: 10.1016/j.jmmm.2015.07.065
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Employing ab initio electronic structure calculations we have investigated the magnetostrictive properties and the effect of epitaxial strain on the magnetic anisotropy (MA) of Au/FeCo/MgO heterostructure. Under small expansive strain on the FeCo layer the system exhibits an in-plane MA. The calculations reveal that the strain dependence of the MA is nonlinear and that the FeCo film undergoes a spin reorientation at a critical strain between 2 and 4%. The underlying mechanism is the strain-induced shift of the spin–orbit coupled d-states of the Fe atoms. We predict a giant magnetostriction coefficient of about 420 Â 10 À 6 in the heterostructure. Published by Elsevier B.V.