Magnetic properties of multilayers from soft X-ray magnetic circular dichroism

Soft X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) is the difference between the absorptivity or reflectivity of left and right circularly polarized soft X-rays at the magnetically interesting L2,3 edges of 3d transition metals or the M4,5 edges of the 4f rare earth elements. Thanks to its large absorption cross-section and strong MCD effect, this technique has become a powerful new means for probing, in an element- and site-specific manner, the magnetic properties of ultra-thin films and multilayers. Soft X-ray MCD experiments, recently conducted at the Dragon beamline, are utilized to demonstrate the key applications of this technique in magnetic thin film research.