hide
Free keywords:
-
Abstract:
This work reports the measurement of magnetic dichroism in
angular-resolved photoemission from in-plane magnetized buried thin
films. The high bulk sensitivity of hard x-ray photoelectron
spectroscopy (HAXPES) in combination with circularly polarized radiation
enables the investigation of the magnetic properties of buried layers.
HAXPES experiments with an excitation energy of 8 keV were performed on
exchange-biased magnetic layers covered by thin oxide films. Two types
of structures were investigated with the IrMn exchange-biasing layer
either above or below the ferromagnetic layer: one with a CoFe layer on
top and another with a Co(2)FeAl layer buried beneath the IrMn layer. A
pronounced magnetic dichroism is found in the Co and Fe 2p states of
both materials. The localization of the magnetic moments at the Fe site
conditioning the peculiar characteristics of the Co(2)FeAl Heusler
compound, predicted to be a half-metallic ferromagnet, is revealed from
the magnetic dichroism detected in the Fe 2p states.
