The exchange interaction in ferromagnetic ultra thin films is a critical parameter in magnetization-based storage and logic devices, yet the accurate measurement of it remains a challenge. While a variety of approaches are currently used to determine the exchange parameter, each has its limitations, and good agreement among them has not been achieved. To date, neutron scattering, magnetometry, Brillouin light scattering, spin-torque ferromagnetic resonance spectroscopy, and Kerr microscopy have all been used to determine the exchange parameter. Here, we present a method that exploits the wavevector selectivity of Brillouin light scattering to measure the spin wave dispersion in both the backward volume and Damon-Eshbach orientations. The exchange, saturation magnetization, and magnetic thickness are then determined by a simultaneous fit of both dispersion branches with general spin wave theory without any prior knowledge of the thickness of a magnetic "dead layer. " In this work, we demonstrate the strength of this technique for ultrathin metallic films, typical of those commonly used in industrial applications for magnetic random-access memory. Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing.
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