Abstract

We present a modified method of data collection and analysis for generalized Magneto-optical ellipsometry (GME) technique. By a perturbative analysis of the light intensity ( I ) and Magneto-optically induced light intensity changes ( δ I ), as functions of the incident and reflected ray polarizer axis angles ( {1} and {2} ), we theoretically and experimentally demonstrate that in the proximity of the extinction of I condition, {1} and {2} can be excellently modeled by a set of quadratic and linear polynomials of {1,2} with R{2} exceeding 0.9 999 in all cases. Compared with the previous conventional GME method (cGME), ours is at least 3.5× more time efficient, the number of adjustable parameters is reduced from 7 to up to 3, and the fitting procedure properly isolates the GME signal from nonrelated effects on I and δ I functions. Moreover, the routine incorporates the minimization of the offsets of {1} and {2} so that the extinction of I coordinates can be determined with a precision better than 2× 10{-3} {deg.} The reliability of our method compared with cGME is tested by measuring the complex refractive index ( N ) and Magneto-optical coupling constant ( Q ) of NiFe and Fe films and the complex Kerr angle ( Φ ) and the ellipsometric parameters ( Ψ and Δ ) on a series of ultrathin NiFe films.