Correlation between the microscopic and macroscopic magnetic properties in ultrathin Fe/Cu(100)-films

The magnetic properties of ultrathin iron films on Cu(100), grown at 300 and 100 K, were investigated by the magneto-optic Kerr effect (MOKE). In the thickness range up to about 11 monolayers, we observe a rich variety of unusual magnetic phases and properties. In particular, Fe films deposited at 300 K exhibit a pronounced peak of the coercive field upon transition from the ferromagnetic phase to the live layer phase. We develop a domain model, which explains this behavior by correlating the microscopic and macroscopic magnetic properties. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.