Electron core-hole interaction in the x-ray absorption spectroscopy of 3d transition metals

A fully relativistic scheme is presented that allows one to deal with the electronic band structure of a solid and the influence of the electron core-hole interaction on its x-ray absorption spectra on the same level. This is achieved in a parameter-free way by working throughout in the framework of the time-dependent density functional theory and linear response formalism. Application to the L-2,L-3-absorption spectra of 3d transition metals demonstrates that the electron core-hole interaction intermixes the L-2 and L-3 partial spectra, strongly affecting the so-called branching ratio. The consequences of this for the magnetic circular x-ray dichroism sum rules are discussed.