Systematics Of X-Ray Resonant Scattering Amplitudes In Rni2ge2 (R=Gd,Tb,Dy,Ho,Er,Tm): The Origin Of The Branching Ratio At The L Edges Of The Heavy Rare Earths

An investigation of the x-ray resonant magnetic scattering (XRMS) across the series of heavy rare-earth elements, coupled with first-principles calculations, has revealed that spin-orbit coupling in the 5d band plays a critical role in the systematics of the XRMS and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism branching ratio at the L edges of magnetic rare-earth compounds.