Abstract
We discovered giant magneto-optical effects in ultrathin ferromagnetic Co films of a few atomic planes (3–5) deposited on Au (111), showing square hysteresis loops.1 For the first time, and by Faraday rotation microscopy, we observed magnetic domains in such ultrathin films exhibiting strong perpendicular anisotropy, and confirmed a recent suggestion2 that field-induced magnetization reversal near the coercive field occurs via a nucleation–domain wall propagation mechanism. The associated magnetic aftereffect is well analyzed from the time dependence of the dendritic magnetic domain structure. Models of domain wall propagation developed for bulk ferromagnets still appear to be valid for ultrathin films. Our study allows to understand better the magnetization reversal process, a crucial effect in this promising magneto-optical storage medium.
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