Fabrication of transition metal (TM = Fe, Co) difluorides-carbon nanocomposite films by magnetron co-sputtered deposition of Fe/Co and Teflon targets

We present a general synthesis of transition metal difluorides (TMF2)-carbon nanocomposite films by magnetron co-sputtering the Fe/Co and polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon) targets. The composites consist of binary TMF2 (TM = Fe, Co) nanoparticles with a crystallite size of ∼8 nm immersed in a carbon matrix. The antiferromagnetic nature of TMF2 nanoparticles with the Néel temperature T N of 40 K (TM = Co) and 78 K (TM = Fe) is confirmed. The ability to create the sputter-deposited TMF2-carbon nanocomposites may not only allow for possible energy applications but also provide a platform for investigating the particulate disordered antiferromagnets.