Twisted-type Magnetic Structures of Thin Dy Layers in an Fe/Dy Multilayer Film Determined by Resonant X-ray Magnetic Diffraction

Abstract

Using the resonant X-ray magnetic diffraction technique with circularly polarized X-rays at the Dy L 3 absorption edge, depth-resolved in-plane magnetization components of Dy layers parallel and perpendicular to the applied field are determined at temperatures between 50 and 300 K in the magnetic field of 3.5 kOe applied in the film plane. The depth-resolved magnetic structures of the Dy layer in an Fe(5.06 nm)/Dy(1.63 nm) multilayer indicate that the parallel components for the interface sublayers are antiparallel to the applied field at all temperatures and that those for the inner sublayers are parallel at 170 and 300 K. All the sublayers have the perpendicular components at all temperatures. The interface sublayers are strongly magnetized at all temperatures with magnetizations directed nearly antiparallel to the applied field. The determined magnetic structures indicate that the thin Dy layer is not a simple ferromagnet but has the twisted-type magnetic structure between 50 and 300 K. In contrast to ...