Mössbauer study of CoFeRhO4

CoFeRhO₄ has been studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. The crystal is found to have a cubic spinel structure with the lattice constant a₀=8.451±0.005 Å. The iron ions are in ferric states. The temperature dependence of the magnetic hyperfine field is analyzed by the Néel theory of ferrimagnetism. The intersublattice superexchange interaction is antiferromagnetic and strong with a strength of J_AB=−12.39k_B while the intrasublattice superexchange interactions are weak with strengths of J_AA=−4.96k_B and J_BB=6.20k_B. As the temperature increases toward the Néel temperature T_N, a systematic line broadening effect in the Mössbauer spectrum is observed and interpreted to originate from different temperature dependences of the magnetic hyperfine fields at various iron sites.