Studies of surface magnetism using electron and ion beam probes (invited)

Spin polarization analysis of electrons from ferromagnets has proven to be a valuable tool for the study of near-surface magnetism. High-resolution imaging of domains and domain walls in the scanning electron microscope is demonstrated. Analysis of the temperature dependence of Stoner excitations in Ni may be carried out in a ‘‘complete’’ inelastic electron scattering experiment with a polarized electron source. Examples for probing the electronic structure of epitaxially grown thin films of Co on Cu(100) by spin-polarized photoemission are given. Two recent applications of ion beam probes are discussed: (i) the analysis of ion-excited spin-polarized secondary electrons and its use for ‘‘magnetic sputter depth profiling,’’ and (ii) the capture of polarized electrons in ion-surface scattering resulting in the emission of circularly polarized light.