Structural and magnetic characterization of large area, free-standing thin films of magnetic ion intercalated dichalcogenides Mn_0.25TaS₂ and Fe_0.25TaS₂

Free-standing thin films of magnetic ion intercalated transition metal dichalcogenides are produced using ultramicrotoming techniques. Films of thicknesses ranging from 30 nm to 250 nm were achieved and characterized using transmission electron diffraction and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism. Diffraction measurements visualize the long range crystallographic ordering of the intercalated ions, while the dichroism measurements directly assess the orbital contributions to the total magnetic moment. We thus verify the unquenched orbital moment in Fe_0.25TaS₂ and measure the fully quenched orbital contribution in Mn_0.25TaS₂. Such films can be used in a wide variety of ultrafast x-ray and electron techniques that benefit from transmission geometries, and allow measurements of ultrafast structural, electronic, and magnetization dynamics in space and time.