Perpendicular magnetism in magnetic multilayer systems

The main aspects of the fully relativistic spin-polarized Screened Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker (KKR) method for layered systems (systems with only two-dimensional translational symmetry) are reviewed including, e.g., a discussion of the Dirac-Kohn-Sham Hamiltonian, magnetic configurations, the inhomogeneous coherent potential approximation (CPA) applicable to such systems, and a short description of the (classical) magnetic dipole-dipole interaction. Based on this type of approach "perpendicular magnetism" is then discussed in terms of characteristic features frequently encountered in studies of the magnetic anisotropy energy of magnetic multilayer systems such as oscillations or reorientation transitions. For this purpose layer-resolved band energy contributions and their discrete Fourier transformations with respect to characteristic parameters are discussed for a few prominent systems. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.