The influence of the interlayer exchange coupling on the magnetism of an Fe(001) monolayer

We investigated changes in the magnetic properties of a single Fe monolayer on Au(0 0 1) induced by the interlayer exchange coupling (IEC) to FcAu monoatomic superlattices. The grazing incidence nuclear resonant scattering of X-rays (GI-NRS) combined with the 57 Fe probe layer concept allowed us to selectively monitor the local structure and magnetism of the Fe(0 0 1) monolayer in a coupled state. The dependence of the monolayer hyperfine parameters on temperature and spacer thickness was determined from the fitted GI-NRS time spectra, collected for the selected thickness of the stepped Au spacer. The influence of the coupling on the hyperfine magnetic field B-HF was negligible at temperatures much lower than T-C of the uncoupled Fe monolayer (T-C = 210 K as checked by MOKE). The analysis of the time-spectra accumulated at 200 K showed a non-monotonous dependence of the average BHF as a function of the spacer thickness, related to IEC oscillations. The maximum influence of IEC on BHF (13 T) was found for the 4 ML Au spacer. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.