Pushing the detection limit of Magnetic Circular Dichroism to 2 nm

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel scattering geometry in Transmission Electron Microscopy that enables Magnetic Circular Dichroism detection at a 2 nm resolution, vastly surpassing previous spatial resolutions.

Contribution

The authors demonstrate a new method in TEM for Magnetic Circular Dichroism with a 2 nm resolution, improving upon prior techniques by an order of magnitude.

Findings

Achieved 2 nm spatial resolution in MCD detection.

Significant improvement over previous EMCD and XMCD resolutions.

Potential for advanced magnetic material analysis at nanoscale.

Abstract

Magnetic Circular Dichroism (MCD) is a standard technique for the study of magnetic properties of materials in synchrotron beamlines. We present here a new scattering geometry in the Transmission Electron Microscope through which MCD can be observed with unprecedented spatial resolution. A convergent electron beam is used to scan a multilayer Fe/Au sample and record energy loss spectra. Differences in the spectra induced by the magnetic moments of the Fe atoms can be resolved with a resolution of 2 nm. This is a breakthrough achievement when compared both to the previous EMCD resolution (200 nm) or the best XMCD experiments (approx. 20 nm), with an improvement of two and one order of magnitude, respectively.