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Updated: May 30, 2026

Experimental Methods for Spin- and Angle-Resolved Photoemission Spectroscopy Combined with Polarization-Variable Laser
Published on: June 28, 2018
Role of spin-flip exchange scattering for hot-electron lifetimes in cobalt
A Goris1, K M Döbrich, I Panzer
1Max-Born-Institut, Max-Born-Straße 2A, 12489 Berlin, Germany.
Abstract:
The spin-dependent lifetimes of hot electrons in fcc Co films were studied by spin- and time-resolved two-photon photoemission. Even for excitation energies close to the Fermi level, we find almost identical lifetimes for majority and minority electrons. This result contradicts ab initio theories predicting 5 to 10 times longer lifetimes for the majority electrons in 3d ferromagnets. We provide direct experimental evidence that this discrepancy is caused by the dominance of exchange scattering in inelastic electron decay, in combination with the excitation of secondary electrons. The latter are inherent for all real materials and devices.
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