Dimensional effects in ultrathin magnetic films

Abstract

Dimensional effects in the critical properties of multilayer Heisenberg films have been numerically studied by Monte Carlo methods. The effect of anisotropy created by the crystal field of a substrate has been taken into account for films with various thicknesses. The calculated critical exponents demonstrate a dimensional transition from two-dimensional to three-dimensional properties of the films with an increase in the number of layers. A spin-orientation transition to a planar phase has been revealed in films with thicknesses corresponding to the crossover region.