Magnetic Properties in Co/Ag and Fe/Ag Compositionally Modulated Multilayer Films

The magneto-optical and magnetic properties of Co/Ag and Fe/Ag compositionally modulated multilayer films (CMF's) were investigated. Co/Ag CMF's have better crystallinity and periodicity than Fe/Ag CMF's. An enhancement of θ
_K
was also observed at the plasma edge of Ag metal in Co/Ag and Fe/Ag CMF's. The peak values of θ
_K
in Co/Ag CMF's are larger than those in Fe/Ag CMF's. Moreover, the enhancement of θ
_K
due to plasma resonance at the granularly crystallized grain boundary of Co and Ag was observed in heat-treated Co/Ag CMF's. A magnetic perpendicular anisotropy K
_u
was induced in both CMF's when the modulation length D was decreased.