Soft-x-ray small-angle scattering as a sensitive probe of magnetic and charge heterogeneity

Cobalt 2p resonant scattering from Co/Pt multilayers with perpendicular anisotropy results from magnetic and chemical heterogeneity having very different length scales. Magnetic and chemical scattering result from domains and the crystalline grain structure, respectively, as confirmed by field-dependent scattering and by imaging using magnetic x-ray and atomic force microscopy. Magnetic and charge scattering have distinct energy spectra that are quantitatively modeled using measured Co scattering factors. Domain and chemical correlations remain uncoupled throughout the reversal process.