Effect of pressure on induced ferromagnetism in Pr3Se4

The pressure dependence to 9.4 kbar of the magnetization of the induced ferromagnet, Pr₃Se₄, is presented. Two ferromagnetic transitions near 15 K are identified. The magnetic component associated with one decreases rapidly with increasing pressure and the high field moment increases. The results are compared to recent work on Pr₃Tl.     

The sound velocity of liquid TeSe mixtures

We have measured the sound velocity of liquid Te₇₀Se₃₀, Te₅₀Se₅₀ and Te₃₀Se₇₀ mixtures and obtained their adiabatic compressibility β_s. There appear prominent maxima in the temperature variations of β_S. It is concluded that the pressure-induced semiconductor-to-metal transition previously observed for liquid Te-Se mixtures is associated with the structural change from Se-like loosely packed to Te-like densely packed structure.     

Thermoelectric power of quasi-one-dimensional Nb3X4 with X=S, Se andTe

The thermoelectric power of linear chain synthetic metals Nb₃X₄ (with X=S, Se and Te) was measured from 5 to 300 K. The thermopower is negative indicating a dominant transport by electrons. Common to three compounds, in lower temperature regions the thermopower rises linearly with temperature but soon saturates. With respect to Nb₃S₄ and Nb₃Se₄ we have found no special anomaly of the thermopower except for a little higher magnitude.With respect to Nb₃Te₄ anomalies in the thermopower vs temperature appear at about 80 and 20 K which are explained in terms of the charge- density-wave phase transition from the simultaneous measurement of the resistivity and the observation of the electron diffraction patterns.     

Luminescence from the Pr 4f5d and S0 states in LiLaP4O12

The photoluminescence and excitation spectra of Pr³⁺ activated LiLaP₄O₁₂ has been investigated in the 10-300 K temperature region. At all temperatures, the luminescence consists of optical transitions emanating from both the Pr³⁺ 4f¹5d¹ and the ¹S₀ states. However, at low temperatures the emission spectrum is dominated by the intraconfiguration emission transitions emanating from the Pr³⁺¹S₀ state. With increasing temperature, there is an exchange of intensity between the two emitting states; emission transitions from the ¹S₀ state exhibit strong intensity quenching while the 4f¹5d¹→4f² emission transitions reveal intensity gain. These results are explained on the basis of thermal population of the 4f¹5d¹ state by the ¹S₀ state. The energy barrier of 0.05 eV (403 cm⁻¹) for the nonradiative process is determined from the temperature dependence of the ¹S₀ lifetime.     

First-order phase transition in potassium dysprosium tungstate induced by the field renormalization and softening of the elastic moduli in the vicinity of a structural Jahn-Teller-type transition

The magnetostriction of KDy(WO₄)₂ single crystals is measured in an external magnetic field at temperatures below the temperature of a structural phase transition of the Jahn-Teller type. A steplike irreversible variation in the elastic strain is observed to occur with an increase in the magnetic field applied along the a or b axis of the monoclinic cell of the crystal. The residual change in the strain is retained after changing the sign of the magnetic field. The return to the initial state characterized by field-induced jumps in the strain is possible only after thermal cycling well above the structural phase transition temperature. The theory of this phenomenon is developed using a phenomenologically derived thermodynamic potential of the elastic sub-system that takes into account the crystal symmetry and the field renormalization of the elastic moduli. The jumplike transitions are interpreted as being due to the magnetic softening of the elastic moduli in the vicinity of the structural phase transition temperature.     

Zero-field μSR in crystalline C60

The C_o60Mu radical in polycrystalline C₆₀ has been studied in zero magnetic field between 9 K and 200 K, and at room temperature. At low temperatures, we observe three low-frequency oscillations which correspond to the intra-triplet transitions of a completely anisotropic muon-electron hyperfine interaction. These signals exhibit a strongly temperature-dependent T₁, attributed to thermally-activated jump rotational diffusion of the C₆₀Mu radical. A fit to an Arhenius law yields an activation energy of 200(20) meV for temperatures below the fcc-sc structural phase transition. At room temperature only the motionally-narrowed 325 MHz singlet-triplet transition is observed.     

Cation ordering and crystal structures in AGa2X4 compounds (CoGa2S4, CdGa2S4, CdGa2Se4, HgGa2Se4, HgGa2Te4)

Single crystals of some AGa₂X₄ compounds (CoGa₂S₄, CdGa₂S₄, CdGa₂Se₄, HgGa₂Se₄, HgGa₂Te₄) were prepared by chemical vapour deposition and flux method.The X-ray structural investigations indicated blende or defect chalcopyrite structures.A simple relationship is suggested between the c/a ratio and the cationic sublattice ordering.     

Jahn-Teller transitions in Yb<Emphasis Type="Italic">X</Emphasis>O<Subscript>4</Subscript> (<Emphasis Type="Italic">X</Emphasis>=V,P) stimulated by a strong magnetic field

The effect of an external magnetic field directed along various symmetry axes of a crystal on Jahn-Teller-type structural phase transitions (quadrupole ordering) is studied in YbPO₄ and YbVO₄ crystals with zircon structure. In the absence of a magnetic field, the crystals are in a precritical state and do not exhibit a spontaneous quadrupole ordering. It is shown that, in a field H ∥ [110], the strain susceptibility χ_γ increases with the field and, at a sufficiently high field strength, an orthorhombic lattice deformation along the [100] axis arises in the crystals under study; i.e., a stimulated Jahn-Teller phase transition of γ symmetry occurs. Using interaction constants determined from independent experiments, we calculated phase diagrams and anomalies in the magnetic and magnetoelastic properties of the YbPO₄ and YbVO₄ crystals near the stimulated phase transitions, investigated the effect of various pairwise interactions on them, and analyzed possible experimental observations of the predicted effects.     

Magnetic properties of the uranium sesquichalcogenides

Magnetic measurements on the orthorhombic uranium sesquichalcogenides and orthorhombic U₃Te₄ were performed in the temperature range 4.2–1000 K and in magnetic fields up to 140 kOe. The temperature dependence of the reciprocal susceptibility was found to be curvilinear for all the investigated compounds. At low temperatures U₂Te₃ and U₃Te appeared to be antiferromagnetic below 106 K. U₂Se₃ and U₂S₃ seem to have a more considerable ferromagnetic contribution below 60 and 80 K, respectively. The magnetic properties are discussed in terms of crystal structure and related properties of the investigated compounds.     

Physical properties,crystal and magnetic structure of layered Fe<Subscript>1.11</Subscript>Te<Subscript>1-</Subscript><Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>Se<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript> superconductors

The physical and structural properties of Fe_1.11Te and Fe_1.11Te_0.5Se_0.5 have been investigated by means of X-ray and neutron diffraction as well as physical property measurements. For the Fe_1.11Te compound, the structure distortion from a tetragonal to monoclinic phase takes place at 64 K accompanied with the onset of antiferromagnetic order upon cooling. The magnetic structure of the monoclinic phase was confirmed to be of antiferromagnetic configuration with a propagation vector k = (1/2, 0, 1/2) based on Rietveld refinement of neutron powder diffraction data. The structural/magnetic transitions are also clearly visible in magnetic, electronic and thermodynamic measurements. For superconducting Fe_1.11Te_0.5Se_0.5 compound, the superconducting transition with T _c = 13.4 K is observed in the resistivity and ac susceptibility measurements. The upper critical field H _c2 is obtained by measuring the resistivity under different magnetic fields. The Kim’s critical state model is adopted to analyze the temperature dependence of the ac susceptibility and the intergranular critical current density is calculated as a function of both field amplitude and temperature. Neutron diffraction results show that Fe_1.11Te_0.5Se_0.5 crystalizes in tetragonal structure at 300 K as in the parent compound Fe_1.11Te and no structural distortion is detected upon cooling to 2 K. However an anisotropic thermal expansion anomaly is observed around 100 K.     

Energy bands and Fermi surfaces of quasi-one-dimensional transition metal chalcogenides Nb3X4

A first-principles self-consistent non-relativistic calculation of the energy-band structures of quasi-one-dimensional transition metal chalcogenides Nb₃S₄, Nb₃Se₄ and Nb₃Te₄ has been performed by using the numerical-basis-set LCAO method. The obtained Fermi surfaces of these three chalcogenides consist of warped or undulating plane-like sheets. Owing to interchain interactions, however, there exist closed orbits on these Fermi surfaces. A mechanism of electron-electron Umklapp scattering processes associated with the calculated Fermi surfaces is proposed as an origin of the unusual T³ form of the temperature dependence of the electrical resistivity of Nb₃S₄ and Nb₃Se₄.     

Magnetische und kalorische Eigenschaften von Alkali-Hyperoxid-Kristallen

The phase transitions of Alkali-Hyperoxide crystals (NaO₂, KO₂, RbO₂, and CsO₂) grown in liquid ammonia have been investigated by means of the following measurements:

1. magnetic susceptibility
2. differential magnetic susceptibility as magnetic field
3. magnetization curve in static and pulsed fields
4. specific heat.

The anomalies of the specific heat could be correlated with the magnetic properties and structural changes. Several new phase transitions were found. The magnetic behaviour of NaO₂ indicates magnetic order (of as yet unknown nature) at low temperatures. The magnetic and caloric behaviour of KO₂ at low temperatures is compatible with a Néel point at 7 K. A metamagnetic transition can be induced at temperatures below 12 K with fields of about 70 kOe. This transition is connected with structural changes. RbsO₂ and CO₂ are probably antiferromagnetic with Néel temperatures of 15 K and 9.6 K, respectively.     

Anisotropy of the linear and quadratic magnetic birefringence in rare-earth semiconductors (γ-Ln2S3 (Ln=Dy3+, Pr3+, Gd3+, La3+)

The field and angular dependence of the magnetic linear birefringence (MLB) in noncentrosymmetric cubic (symmetry class T _d) rare-earth (RE) semiconductors γ-Ln₂S₃ (Ln=Dy³⁺, Pr³⁺, Gd³⁺, La³⁺) was studied. The field dependence of the MLB in Dy₂S₃ and Pr₂S₃ is a combination of two contributions, quadratic and linear with respect to the magnetic induction B, both possessing a strong anisotropy. The quadratic birefringence related to the Cotton-Mouton effect manifestations at a wavelength of λ=633 nm is characterized in Dy₂S₃ by the value of β=1.5 deg/(cm T²) and the anisotropy parameter a=?0.7 and in Pr₂S₃, by β=0.2 deg/(cm T²) and a=2. The non-reciprocal MLB caused by the magnetic-field-induced spatial dispersion reaches γ 0.55 and 0.71 deg/(cm T) in Dy₂S₃ and Pr₂S₃, respectively. The relationship between parameters A and g of the γ_ijkl tensor describing contributions of the B _ik_j type to the dielectric tensor ε_ij(ω, k, B) is A=2g in Dy₂S₃ (as well as in boracite crystals containing 3d ions), which is characteristic of the second-order magnetoelectric permittivity manifestations in the optical frequency range. In Pr₂S₃, the relationship A=3.3g is evidence of manifestations of the additional quadrupole mechanism. A comparison of the Cotton-Mouton and Faraday effects in Ln₂S₃ and in magnetic semiconductors Cd_1?x Mn_xTe shows a principal difference between these systems and indicates that both phenomena in Ln₂S₃ are determined by the optical transitions in RE ions rather than by the interband or exciton transitions. This is also confirmed by the comparison of the Cotton-Mouton effect manifestations in Ln₂S₃, in dielectric Dy₃Ga₅O₁₂ and Dy₃Al₅O₁₂ single crystal cubic garnets, and in Dy₂O₃. An analysis of the non-reciprocal MLB mechanisms related to manifestations of the local interconfiguration optical transitions 4f ^N→ 4f ^N?15d in RE ions showed that this phenomenon, in contrast to the Cotton-Mouton and Faraday effects, is caused by the presence of odd components of the crystal field acting upon the RE ion in Ln₂S₃. In Gd₂S₃, as well as in diamagnetic Ln₂S₃, neither the Cotton-Mouton effect nor the non-reciprocal MLB are manifested at T=294 K, which is explained by different microscopic mechanisms of the magnetooptical phenomena for ions in the S-state and diamagnetic ions, on the one hand, and RE ions with nonzero orbital moment, on the other hand.     

Electro- and thermoreflectance of Bi2Te3 and Bi2Se3

Electroreflectance measurements in Bi₂Te₃ and Bi₂Se₃ with the electric field vector of the incident light both inclined and perpendicular to the C-axis have been made at room temperature. The structures found by other workers in the reflection measurements are observed in the present experiment, together with new structures at 0.91 eV, 1.18 eV, 1.78 eV, and 2.61 eV in Bi₂Se₃ which are not related to formerly observed transitions. From these measurements, the selection rules for direct optical transitions in Bi₂Te₃ and Bi₂Se₃ are studied. Thermoreflectance measurements are also made at both room and liquid-nitrogen temperatures. The positions of the peaks obtained in the present work are compared with the electroreflectance and reflection data.     

Study on spin configuration in photoresponsive iron mixed-valence complexes by Mössbauer spectroscopy

We have investigated magnetic properties in a series of photoresponsive dithiooxalato (dto)-bridged iron mixed-valence complexes, (SP-R)[Fe^IIFe^III(dto)₃] (SP-R = R-substituted pyridospiropyran cation; R = Me, Et, and Pr; abbreviated as 1 ^Me, 1 ^Et, and 1 ^Pr, respectively). As for our previous reports, 1 ^Me and 1 ^Et show two-step succeeding ferromagnetic transitions at T _C?=?25 & 8 K and 22 & 5 K, respectively. However, 1 ^Et has no hysteresis in the magnetic susceptibility, while 1 ^Me undergoes the charge transfer phase transition with thermal hysteresis around 75 K. To elucidate the two-step transitions of them, we measured ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectra of 1 ^Et. The spectra of Fe^II (S?=?2) and Fe^III (S?=?1/2) in the HTP were observed in the magnetically ordered state as well as the paramagnetic state, and revealed that only HTP exists in a temperature range up to 5 K. The result is consistent with that of 1 ^Pr, where one ferromagnetic phase transition occurs at T _C?=?10 K. ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy is useful to clarify the origin of the succeeding magnetic transition for these systems.     

LARGE MAGNETIC ENTROPY CHANGE NEAR CHARGE-ORDERED TRANSITION TEMPERATURE IN PEROVSKITE-TYPE MANGANITE

The magnetocaloric effect in polycrystalline of Pr_1-xSr_xMnO₃ (x=0.33, 0.43, 0.50) has been investigated. A large magnetic entropy change (7.1J/kgK) was discovered in Pr_0.5Sr_0.5MnO₃ under a low magnetic field of 1T at charge-ordered state transition temperature (161K). The physical mechanism is related to a drastic magnetization change at a temperature where the field-induced magnetic, electron and structural phase transitions occur (from the antiferromagnetic charge-ordered state to the ferromagnetic charge-disordered state).     

Low-temperature quasi-adiabatic magnetization reversal of rare-earth Ising metamagnets

The magnetization and magnetically induced elastic strains of rare-earth Ising antiferromagnets DyAlO₃ and TbAlO₃ are shown to exhibit an unusual behavior associated with low-temperature metamagnetic phase transitions. As an external magnetic field is applied and then removed slowly, the state of the magnetic system in these compounds follows quite different paths on the H-T diagram. Small alternating-sign variations in the field magnitude cause the magnetic system to switch reversibly from one path to another, which is accompanied by sharp changes in the magnetization and elastic strains. The observed anomalies are shown to be due to the magnetization process being quasi-adiabatic in character in the compounds under study. This fact should be taken into account in interpreting the data on the magnetization and magnetostriction in Ising antiferromagnets undergoing metamagnetic transitions at low temperatures. Experimentally, quasi-adiabatic magnetization makes it possible to determine the critical fields for metamagnetic transitions very exactly and to investigate the H-T phase diagram at temperatures that are far below the minimum temperature of a helium bath and are unattainable under strictly isothermal conditions.     

Magnetic properties and spin dynamics of CoFeB–SiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> multilayer granular heterostructures

It has been found that CoFeB–SiO₂/C and CoFeB–SiO₂/Bi₂Te₃ multilayer heterostructures with a cluster structure of CoFeB layers feature a long-range magnetic order in the entire temperature range from 2 to 300 K. At high temperatures (T = 300 K), CoFeB clusters exhibit magnetic properties characteristic of superparamagnets. At low temperatures (T = 5 K), clusters are ferromagnetic, and the easy magnetization axis is in the film plane. The temperature of the ferromagnetic-to-superparamagnetic state transition of clusters depends on a dielectric interlayer material: the use of Bi₂Te₃ instead of C as a spacer layer leads to an increase in the transition temperature by a factor of 4 and an increase in the magnetization blocking temperature of CoFeB clusters in a field of 100 Oe by a factor of 3.     

Magnetic properties of HoFe3(BO3)4

The magnetic properties of an antiferromagnet with trigonal symmetry, namely, HoFe₃(BO₃)₄, have been investigated theoretically. The calculations have been performed in the molecular field approximation and in the framework of the crystal field model for the rare-earth subsystem. Extensive experimental data on the magnetic properties of HoFe₃(BO₃)₄ have been interpreted and good agreement between theory and experiment has been achieved using the obtained theoretical dependences. The spontaneous spin-reorientation transition and the spin-reorientation transition induced by a magnetic field B ‖ a from the easy-axis to easy-plane state, as well as the spin-flop transition in a magnetic field B ‖ c, have been described. It has been shown that the spontaneous spin-reorientation transition is a magnetic analog of the Jahn-Teller effect. The temperature dependences of the initial magnetic susceptibility at temperatures ranging from 2 to 300 K, the nonlinear curves of magnetization for B ‖ c and B ⊥ c in a magnetic field up to 1.2 T (which indicate the occurrence of first-order phase transitions), and their evolution with variations in the temperature have been described, as well as the temperature and field dependences of the magnetization in a magnetic field up to 9 T. The parameters of the trigonal crystal field for the rare-earth ion Ho³⁺ and the parameters of the Fe-Fe and Ho-Fe exchange interactions have been determined in the course of interpretation of the experimental data.     

Evidence of glassy ferromagnetic phase and kinetic arrest of electronic phase in Sm0.35Pr0.15Sr0.5MnO3 manganites

The effect of doping of rare earth Pr³⁺ ion as a replacement of Sm³⁺ in Sm_0.5Sr_0.5MnO₃ is investigated. Temperature dependent dc and ac magnetic susceptibility, resistivity, magnetoresistance measurements on chemically synthesized (Sm_0.5−xPr_x)Sr_0.5MnO₃ show various unusual features with doping level x=0.15. The frequency independent ferromagnetic to paramagnetic transition at higher temperature (∼191 K) followed by a frequency dependent reentrant magnetic transition at lower temperature (∼31 K) has been observed. The nature of this frequency dependent reentrant magnetic transition is described by a critical slowing down model of spin glasses. From non-linear ac susceptibility measurements it has been confirmed that the finite size ferromagnetic clusters are formed as a consequence of intrinsic phase separation, and undergo spin glass-like freezing below a certain temperature. There is an unusual observation of a 2nd harmonic peak in the non-linear ac susceptibility around this reentrant magnetic transition at low temperature (∼31 K). Arrott plots at 10 and 30 K confirm the existence of glassy ferromagnetism below this low temperature reentrant transition. Electronic- and magneto-transport measurements show a strong magnetic field—temperature history dependence and strong irreversibility with respect to the sweeping of magnetic field. These results are attributed to the effect of phase separation and kinetic arrest of the electronic phase in this phase separated manganite at low temperatures.