AVS 45th International Symposium
    Magnetic Interfaces and Nanostructures Technical Group Friday Sessions
       Session MI-FrM

Paper MI-FrM10
Magnetooptical Characterization of Layered Structures using Variable Angle of Incidence Generalized Magnetooptical Ellipsometry (VA-GME)

Friday, November 6, 1998, 11:20 am, Room 324/325

Session: Magnetization Dynamics and Magneto-Optics
Presenter: A. Berger, University of California, San Diego
Authors: A. Berger, University of California, San Diego
M.R. Pufall, University of California, San Diego
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Recently, we have developed the technique of Generalized Magnetooptical Ellipsometry (GME) which allows a complete optical and magnetooptical characterization of a ferromagnetic bulk material.@footnote 1@ The technique combines the advantages of a generalized ellipsometric approach, enabling us to retrieve the maximum amount of information from a reflection experiment, with a high sensitivity measurement which allows for a precise determination of the relatively small magnetooptical material constants. In the present study, we have extended the concept of GME to multiple measurements with variable angle of incidence (VA). This not only allows for a consistency check of the previously performed magnetooptical bulk measurements, but in addition it enables us to characterize more complex layered structures by a simultaneous analysis of the VA-GME data sets. The experiments are performed with an experimental setup almost identical to the previously reported one, using a HeNe-Laser as a light source and 2 linear polarizers as the polarization sensitive elements.@footnote 1@ The sample orientation and the position of the detector arm of the ellipsometer are rotatable to allow for a variable angle of incidence. As a first test structure we have used a thick permalloy film with a SiO@sub 2@ overcoating. The magnetooptical structure analysis was then performed by a least square-fit procedure of the entire VA-GME data set. The consistency of the results was checked by a conventional ellipsometric measurement and by a self-consistent comparison of independently measured VA-GME data sets for different in-plane orientations of the magnetization. Our results clearly demonstrate the successful extension of GME to a variable angle of incidence measurement technique, which allows a complete optical and magnetooptical characterization of layered magnetic materials. This work has been supported by the ONR-N000-1495-10541, NSF-DMR-94-00439, and the CMRR at UCSD. @FootnoteText@ @footnote 1@A. Berger and M. R. Pufall, Appl. Phys. Lett. 71, 965 (1997)