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Updated: Apr 19, 2026

Author Spotlight: Magnetometric Characterization of Intermediates in the Solid-State Electrochemistry of Redox-Active Metal-Organic Frameworks
Published on: June 9, 2023
Magnetism of Ho and Er atoms on close-packed metal surfaces
F Donati1, A Singha1, S Stepanow2
1Institute of Condensed Matter Physics (ICMP), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 3, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
Abstract:
We investigated the magnetic properties of individual Ho atoms adsorbed on the (111) surface of Pt, which have been recently claimed to display single ion magnetic behavior. By combining x-ray absorption spectroscopy and magnetic dichroism measurements with ligand field multiplet calculations, we reveal a ground state which is incompatible with long spin relaxation times, in disagreement with former findings. A comparative study of the ground state and magnetic anisotropy of Ho and Er on Pt(111) and Cu(111) emphasizes the different interaction of the 4f orbitals with localized and delocalized substrate states. In particular, we find a striking rotation of the magnetization easy axis for Er, which changes from out of plane on Pt(111) to in plane on Cu(111).
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