Abstract
Direct measurements of heat capacity from 80 to 540 K of antiferromagnetic superlattices of NiO (high Néel temperature ), CoO (low ), and MgO (nonmagnetic) are used to study the effect of exchange coupling and layer thickness on magnetic ordering. NiO/CoO superlattices with thin layers show a single heat capacity peak similar to a NCO alloy; with increasing layer thickness, the peak splits into two maxima. Finite size effects are seen in uncoupled NiO and CoO. Observed shifts in show the importance of correlation lengths and spin fluctuations in the ordering.
- Received 13 June 1996
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.77.3451
©1996 American Physical Society