Atomic scale magnetic and structural imaging by achromatic electron microscopy

The atomic-level knowledge of local spin configuration of the magnetic materials is of great importance to predict and control their physical properties, in order to meet the challenges of ever-increasing demands on performance of functional materials. However, it is highly challenging to experimentally characterize magnetic properties of such materials with atomic scale spatial resolution.
Here, we show that a combination of electron energy-loss magnetic chiral dichroism (EMCD)¹ and chromatic-aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy, which can provide element-selective orbital and spin magnetic moments atomic plane by atomic plane. This unique capability, which we demonstrate for Sr₂FeMoO₆, opens the door to local atomic level studies of spin configurations in a multitude of materials that exhibit different types of magnetic coupling, thereby contributing to a detailed understanding of physical origins of magnetic properties of materials at the highest spatial resolution².
[1].Schattschneider, P. et al. Detection of magnetic circular dichroism using a transmission electron microscope. Nature 441, 486–488 (2006).
[2].Zechao Wang. et al . Atomic scale imaging of magnetic circular dichroism by achromatic electron microscopy. Nature Materials. 17, 221-225 (2018).