Improved imaging of magnetic domains with a photoelectron emission microscope by utilizing symmetry and momentum selection

TL;DR

This paper presents a method to enhance magnetic domain imaging contrast in photoelectron emission microscopy by leveraging symmetry and momentum selection, validated through calculations and experiments on Fe(001).

Contribution

The study introduces a novel contrast enhancement technique using symmetry-guided momentum selection in photoelectron emission microscopy.

Findings

Contrast improved significantly using symmetry considerations.

Experimental validation on Fe(001) surface confirms the method's effectiveness.

Computational and experimental results are in good agreement.

Abstract

Imaging of magnetic domains with a photoelectron emission microscope operated with photon energies in the threshold regime often suffers from low contrast. In this work we show by symmetry considerations, photoemission calculations, and imaging experiments, how the contrast can be improved significantly. The key to both domain selectivity and sizable intensity asymmetries is, guided by symmetry considerations, selecting the momenta of the photoelectrons by a properly positioned contrast aperture. By comparing computational with experimental results for an Fe(001) surface we prove the feasibility of the approach.