Fe on Au(001): magnetism and band formation

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Abstract
The development of thin-film electronic and magnetic properties with film size are addressed in a study of Fe on Au(001), up to 10 Fe layers thick and including the Au overlayer formed during normal growth conditions. Enhanced moments at the Fe/Au interface are observed, decaying to bulk over 3 Fe layers, and the weak Fe-Au interaction is reflected in moments similar to those of the Fe(001) surface and in a very small asymmetry in the magnetic properties of the Fe film. Calculated hyperfine fields are found to exhibit a strong dependence upon film thickness and no simple relationship with the local spin moments. Densities of states and core-level shifts reflect changes in nearest-neighbour species and give a consistent picture of the interface bonding. The development of zone-centre states with film thickness is followed, and bulk-band overlap and interfacial bonding are found to influence the distribution of quantum well states strongly.