Structural analysis of Fe/Cr superlattices and their components

Structural analysis of metallic superlattices is essential for understanding their interesting transport properties like the giant magnetoresistance (GMR) effect. We present a detailed analysis of the superlattice which shows a record GMR value. The analysis is done by simulating its x-ray diffraction spectrum measured with a synchrotron x-ray source. The ingredients for this simulation are obtained from simulations of x-ray diffraction spectra of single Fe and Cr films. This way we reduce the number of free parameters resulting in reliable values for the interfaces roughness. We also show that x-ray diffraction spectra of systems with low contrast in electron density can be quantitatively analysed.