Thickness-Dependent Curie Temperatures of Ultrathin Magnetic Films: Effect of the Range of Spin-Spin Interactions
Year: 2001
Type: article
Abstract: We present a simple model of spin-spin coupling which provides insight into the nature of the rapid decrease in the Curie temperature with decreasing thin film thickness $n$ (number of monolayers). The shift of Curie temperature $t(n){\phantom{\rule{0ex}{0ex}}=\phantom{\rule{0ex}{0ex}}1\ensuremath{-}T}_{c}(n){/T}_{c}(\ensuremath{\infty})$ follows the usual power law $t(n)\ensuremath{\sim}{n}^{\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\lambda}}$ in thin films crossing over to linear behavior $t(n)\ensuremath{\sim}n$ in the ultrathin film thickness limit. Experimental results for ferromagnetic thin films are compared, and shown to follow curves of $t(n)$ with $\ensuremath{\lambda}$ values dependent on the nature of the spin-spin interactions.
Source: Physical Review Letters
Authors: Renjun Zhang, Roy F. Willis
Institution: Pennsylvania State University
Language: English
Subfield: Condensed Matter Physics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2092622635