Аннотация:Circular magnetic x-ray dichroism is a promising new tool for the study of spin and orbital moments in ferromagnetically ordered materials. For rare-earth systems the L2 and L3 edge dichroic spectra give information about the magnetic properties of the 5d conduction electrons. This article addresses a few of the key issues concerning the interpretation of the spectra. In particular, the quadrupole nature of the dichroic spectra below the L absorption edges and its angular dependence is discussed. The important role of the 4f-5d exchange in causing a large and important spin dependence in the 2p–5d matrix elements is likewise examined.
