  The investigation of the properties of metal-semiconductor interfaces has
gained significant attention due to the unique features that emerge from the
combination of both metal and semiconductor attributes. In this report, the
magnetic properties of Ni/Si interfaces utilizing X-ray magnetic circular
dichroism (XMCD) spectroscopy at the Ni and Si edges have been studied. This
approach allows to distinguish unambiguously the local magnetism on Ni and Si
via individual core-level excitations. Two samples with different semiconductor
dopings were investigated using both total electron yield (TEY) and
reflectivity configurations. The experimental results uncovered magnetization
at equilibrium in both the metallic layer and in the proximal layer of the
semiconductor substrate, implying the presence of induced spin polarization in
Si at equilibrium, possibly arising from the depletion layer region. These
results hold significant value in the field of spintronics, as similar systems
have been demonstrated to generate spin injection through optical medium,
opening a new pathway for next generation nonvolatile high speed devices.
