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 (delta I), as functions of the incident and reflected ray polarizer axis angles (phi(1) and phi(2)), we theoretically and experimentally demonstrate that in the proximity of the extinction of I condition, phi(1) and phi(2) can be excellently modeled by a set of quadratic and linear polynomials of phi(1,2) with R-2 exceeding 0.9 999 in all cases. Compared with the previous conventional GME method (cGME), ours is at least 3.5x 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 delta I functions. Moreover, the routine incorporates the minimization of the offsets of phi(1) and phi(2) so that the extinction of I coordinates can be determined with a precision better than 2 x 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 (Phi) and the ellipsometric parameters (psi and Delta) on a series of ultrathin NiFe films.