OPTICAL BEHAVIOUR OF Fe IN MAGNETIC MULTILAYERS

Magneto-optical (MO) polar and longitudinal Kerr effect spectra between 1.5 and 5.7 eV measured on series of magnetic multilayers Fe/Ag, Fe/AlN, Fe/Bi, Fe/V, Fe/Ta, Fe/Pt and TbFe/Pt with a varied thickness of ultrathin Fe are reported. The observed trends in the MO spectra can be explained using a 4×4 matrix model assuming the composition profile which incorporates interface transition layers. The aim of the paper is to demonstrate the effect of non-ferromagnetic spacer on MO spectra and to provide MO data for Fe suitable for the modeling of the optical interactions in Fe containing multilayers.