Magnetic nanoscale dots on colloid crystal surfaces

We demonstrate that uniform, ordered, single-domain magnetic nanoscale dots can be fabricated on concentrated colloid surfaces. The substrate consists of compact silica nanosphere arrays grown on a glass wafer. Through the su bsequent deposition and oxidation treatment of a Co film, monodisperse magn etic Co nanoscale dot arrays with controlled magnetic properties and size w ere obtained. We suggest that magnetic dots deposited on colloidal surfaces might open a way of developing artificially nanostructured materials for f undamental studies in nanomagnetism and for applications such as patterned magnetic recording media. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0003- 6 951(00)00106-6].