Tuning the magnetic anisotropy of ultrathin Fe/Ag(001) films from biaxial to uniaxial by ion sculpting

Ion sculpting of ultrathin Fe/Ag(001) films induces the self-assembled formation of nanometric surface ripples oriented along the ion beam direction and the corresponding onset of an in-plane uniaxial contribution to magnetic anisotropy. The authors show that fine tuning of the ion dose impinging on the film allows to tailor the in-plane magnetic anisotropy of such films from purely biaxial in the as-grown state to purely uniaxial. The magnitude of magnetic anisotropy in the pure uniaxial state can be tailored by varying the Fe film thickness prior to irradiatio