Spin polarized low energy electron microscopy investigations of magnetic transitions in Fe/Cu(1 0 0)

Magnetic transitions in ultrathin Fe films on the Cu(1 0 0) surface have been studied with spin polarized low energy electron microscopy. By monitoring averaged image intensity oscillations and the evolution of magnetization and magnetic domain structure simultaneously and continuously during growth, magnetism and film thickness are correlated with unprecedented precision. The thickness range over which ferromagnetism exists in films grown at room temperature generally increases as the deposition rate is decreased. This trend is attributed to the influence of residual hydrogen. The two-dimensional Ising model with finite size scaling of the Curie temperature accurately describes the evolution of magnetization with increasing film thickness.