Magnetic structures in thin films

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Abstract
Magnetic rearrangements in the vicinity of the surface are shown to occur at 0°K in Heisenberg thin films with nearest-neighbor exchange coupling and bulk and surface anisotropy. These reconstructions are characterized by a penetration depth of a few layers only, and occur even in strong external fields of the same order as the exchange fields. The part played by each factor is analyzed. One special point is that large penetration depths are obtained when the external field is directed along a hard axis, with a strength corresponding to the bulk anisotropy field. A small variation in surface anisotropy can then induce a macroscopic magnetization reorientation. The structure of coupled thin films is also derived in order to analyze interfacial magnetic reconstructions.