In-situ electromagnet with active cooling for real-time magneto-optic Kerr effect spectroscopy

TL;DR

This paper introduces a compact in-situ electromagnet with active cooling for ultra-high vacuum environments, enabling real-time magneto-optic Kerr effect spectroscopy during thin film deposition.

Contribution

The work presents a novel electromagnet design with active cooling integrated into a magneto-optic system for real-time magnetic studies in ultra-high vacuum.

Findings

Demonstrated sharp spin reorientation transition at 9 monolayers of Ni.

Enabled real-time, in-situ magnetic measurements during thin film growth.

Enhanced thermal stability and magnetic field homogeneity in the setup.

Abstract

We present a compact \textit{in-situ} electromagnet with an active cooling system for the use in ultra-high vacuum environments. The active cooling enhances the thermal stability and increases the electric current that can be applied through the coil, promoting the generation of homogeneous magnetic fields, required for applications in real-time deposition experiments. The electromagnet has been integrated into a reflectance difference magneto-optic Kerr effect (RD-MOKE) spectroscopy system that allows the synchronous measurement of the optical anisotropy and the magneto-optic response in polar MOKE geometry. Proof of principle studies have been performed in real-time during the deposition of ultra-thin Ni films on Cu(110)-(2$\times$1)O surfaces, corroborating the extremely sharp spin reorientation transition above a critical coverage of 9 monolayers and demonstrating the potential of the applied setup for real-time and \textit{in-situ} investigations of magnetic thin films and interfaces.