Oka, H., Ignatiev, P. A., Wedekind, S., Rodary, G., Niebergall, L., Stepanyuk, V. S., Sander, D., Kirschner, J.
Spatial modulation of spin polarization within a single Co island
Hyomen Kagaku 31, (9),pp 480-486 (2010)
When electrons are confined to nanostructures, quantum interference takes place due to their wave-particle duality. Using spin-polarized scanning tunneling microscopy, we studied the influence of quantum interference of electrons on the spatial distribution of the spin polarization within a single magnetic nanostructure. We find changes in both the magnitude and sign of the spin polarization on a subnanometer scale. We compare our experimental results with ab initio
calculations of the spin-resolved local density of states (LDOS). We find that the modulation of the spin-polarization at a given energy can be ascribed to the different magnitudes of spatially modulated majority states and non-modulated minority states contributing to the total LDOS.
TH-2010-35