Study of magnetism using circularly polarized soft X-rays

It has recently been shown that spin-resolved valence band photoemission spectra can be obtained from macroscopically non-magnetic transition metal materials. This is achieved by combining circularly polarized soft X-rays, electron spin detection and 2P(3/2) (L-3) resonant photoemission. These experiments have been performed at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) by combining a helical undulator, HELIOS I, a 'Dragon' spherical grating monochromator and the New York University (NYU) spin-resolved spectrometer, specifically designed for soft-X-ray photoemission experiments. Examples will be given of applications to antiferromagnetic materials (e.g. CuO) and paramagnets (e.g. nickel metal above its Curie temperature). (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved