Magnetic measurements with atomic-plane resolution

Rapid development of magnetic nanotechnologies calls for experimental techniques capable of providing magnetic information with subnanometre spatial resolution. Available probes of magnetism either detect only surface properties, such as spin-polarized scanning tunnelling microscopy, magnetic force microscopy or spin-polarized low-energy electron microscopy, or they are bulk probes with limited spatial resolution or quantitativeness, such as X-ray magnetic circular dichroism or classical electron magnetic circular dichroism (EMCD). Atomic resolution EMCD methods have been proposed, although not yet experimentally realized. Here, we demonstrate an EMCD technique with an atomic size electron probe utilizing a probe-corrected scanning transmission electron microscope in its standard operation mode. The crucial element of the method is a ramp in the phase of the electron beam wavefunction, introduced by a controlled beam displacement. We detect EMCD signals with atomic-plane resolution, thereby bringing near-atomic resolution magnetic circular dichroism spectroscopy to hundreds of laboratories worldwide.