TABLE OF CONTENTS Spin-polarized low energy electron microscopy is one of several methods for the study of the magnetic microstructure of surfaces and thin films on surfaces. It is a non-scanning, full-field imaging method that allows much faster image aquisition than scanning methods, provided that the electrons are elastically backscattered along or close to the optical axis of the instrument. This is the case in single crystals and epitaxial films or films with strong fiber texture. After a brief introduction (6.1), this chapter first discusses the physics of the electron beam specimen interaction that is the basis of SPLEEM (6.2). This is followed by a brief description of the experimental aspects of the method (6.3). The remaining part is devoted to the applications of SPLEEM mainly in the study of thin film systems (6.4). The final section (6.5) briefly summarizes the possibilities and limitations of the method.
SPLEEM (spin-polarized low energy electron microscopy) is an imaging method that is based on the spin dependence of the elastic backscattering of slow electrons from ferromagnetic surfaces. It is related to SPLEED (spin-polarized low energy electron diffraction) in the same manner as LEEM is to LEED. SPLEEM differs from LEEM in that the incident beam is partially spin-polarized, always normal to the surface, and only the specularly reflected beam and its close environment is used for imaging, while in LEEM sometimes tilted illumination or other diffracted beams are used. The normal incidence and reflection ensures, at least in the absence of multiple scattering,...
