Crystal field effects in the L23 XMCD of rare earth insulators

Abstract

We present the L23 XMCD of insulating rare earth (oxides and fluorides). The paramagnetic samples were magnetised in a 7T field and cooled down to 5–10K. We compare our XMCD data with a recent model for a 4fN 5d0 electronic configuration. The L2 edge displays a derivative shape, in agreement with the models. The L3 edge however, is found to deviate, having a more complicated shape, due to the presence of quadrupolar contributions and, we argue, crystal field effects.