Acknowledgements

I'd like to thank the following:

• the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, in the UK, for financial support,
• Sally Hatton, for items of help too numerous to mention,
• Tony Bland, for tuition in the physics of thin magnetic films, for supervising this project with a pleasantly light hand on the rudder, for arranging funds for equipment, for suggesting the eventual possibility of conducting polarized electron measurements on semiconductor-ferromagnet systems (chapter 2.8,) to some resistance from me at the time, for providing a copy of ``Electronic Structure Calculations of Low-Dimensional Transition-Metals'' [7], and for other items of help too numerous to mention,
• David MacKay, for tuition in Bayesian statistics, and for many helpful discussions,
• Peter Bode, for tuition in the principles of ultra-high vacuum physics, of molecular beam epitaxy, and of structural and magnetic characterization of surfaces, and for collaboration in the maintenance of the manganese evaporator (section 4.3,) and in the early experiments described in Mott Polarimetry at the Cavendish Laboratory [8], which led directly to those described in this thesis (part III) and for other items of help too numerous to mention,
• Richard Saunders, for providing teaching work,
• Roger Halls, for assistance in electronics tasks relating to the experiments (part III)
• Tim Goldrein, for safety advice, without which this project might have ended in disaster,
• Jane Blunt, for safety advice, without which this project might have ended in disaster,
• Barry Dunning, for suggesting that anomalously low count rates might be the result of saturation of the channeltrons (appendix 2.11,)
• Pete Flaxman, for tuition in matters relating to the use of cryogenic fluids and of pressurized gases,
• Tony Charnley, for tuition in matters relating to the use of vacuum pumps and of pressurized gases,
• Rik Balsod, for tuition in the principles of ultra-high vacuum physics and of general laboratory maintenance, and for assistance in engineering and manufacturing tasks related to the experiments (part III,)
• Bob Butcher, for providing teaching work,
• Julia Riley, for providing teaching work, and for involving me a number of interesting projects related to physics education,
• Geeta Saran, for assistance in the purchase of electrical equipment related to improvements in the safety of the experimental setup,
• Paola Atkinson, for recommending Ultrahigh Vacuum Practice [9],
• Thanos Mitrelias, for collaboration in the intermediate experiments (sections 5.4, 5.5,) in the angle-dependence measurements, and in associated hardware upgrades, for immense indulgence and patience while I took research time to work on a project of my own [10], and for other items of help too numerous to mention,
• Klaus Peter Kopper, for collaboration in the intermediate experiments (sections 5.4, 5.5,) in the angle-dependence measurements, and in associated hardware upgrades, for immense indulgence and patience while I took research time to work on a project of my own [10], for arranging the polishing of the copper crystal (section 4.2,) for undertaking MOKE measurements (sections 2.9, 5.5) and for other items of help too numerous to mention,
• Christian Gürtler, for tuition in the use of Labview software, for the loan of the temporary replacement electron gun (chapter 3,) and for assistance in the installation of that electron gun,
• Dave Johnson, for assistance in engineering and manufacturing tasks related to the experiments (part III,)
• Suresh Mistry, for safety advice, without which this project might have ended in disaster,
• Dave Powell, for tuition in the use of several items of workshop equipment, and for assistance in engineering and manufacturing tasks related to the experiments (part III,)
• Terry Stubbings, for assistance in engineering and manufacturing tasks related to the experiments (part III,)
• Bill Egelhoff, for safety advice, without which this project might have ended in disaster,
• Mathias Kläui, for valuable advice on the oral presentation of theoretical results,
• Sam Gardiner, for recommending ``Giant magnetoresistance and microstructural characteristics of epitaxial $Fe$-$Ag$ and $Co$-$Ag$ granular thin films,'' [11], ``Correlation between dynamic magnetic hysteresis loops and nanoscale roughness of ultrathin $Co$ films'' [12], and ``Correlation between crystalline structure and soft magnetic properties in sputtered sendust films'' [13], and providing copies thereof,
• Ian Farrer, for suggesting an adaptation to my Makefile for L^ATEX documents, which improved the quality of the portable document format output.

I am certain to have forgotten some individuals who deserve an acknowledgement here; I hope that they will forgive my omission.