Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 September 2012
In contrast to Fe(110) -films on W(110), which are magnetized always in the plane as a result of easy-plane magnetic surface anisotropies (MSA), Fe(110) -films on Cr(110) show perpendicular magnetization up to a thickness of roughly 3 Monolayers, as a result of a perpendicular MSA of the Fe(110)/Cr/(110) interface. Acoordingly, Fe(110) -films on W(110), covered with Cr(110), show asymmetric MSA, the easy-plane mSA of the W(110)/Fe(110) -interface opposing the perpendicular one of the Fe(110)/Cr(110) -interface. It turns out that MSA is asymmetric too in Fe(110) films on W(110) covered by Cu, Ag, Au or UHV.