STRUCTURE AND MAGNETIC PROPERTIES OF NITRIDES R3Fe29-xCrxN4

A systematic investigation of nitrides R₃Fe_29-xCr_xN₄(R=Y, Ce, Nd, Sm, Gd, Tb, and Dy) has been performed. The nitrogen concentration in the nitride R₃Fe_29-xCr_xN_y was determined to be y=4. Nitrogenation leads to a relative volume expansion of about 5.3%. The lattice constants and unit cell volume decrease with in creasing rare earth atomic number from Nd to Dy, reflecting the lanthanide contraction. In average, the increase of Curie temperature upon nitrogenation is about 200 K, compared with its parent compound. The nitrogenation also results in a remarkable improvement in the saturation magnetization and anisotropy fields for R₃Fe_29-xCr_xN₄ at 4.2 K and room temperature, comp ared with their parent compounds. A spin reorientation of Nd₃Fe_24.5 Cr_4.5N₄ occurs at around 368 K, which is 138 K higher than that of Nd₃Fe_24.5Cr_4.5. Magnetohistory effects of R₃Fe_29-xCr_xN₄(R=Nd and Sm) are observed in a low field of 0.04 T. First order magneti zation process occurs in Sm₃Fe_24.0Cr_5.0N₄ in magnetic fields of around 3.0 T at 4.2 K. After nitrogenation the easy magnetization direction of Sm₃Fe_24.0Cr_5.0 is changed from the easy cone structure to the uniaxial. The excellent intrinsic magnetic properties of Sm₃Fe_24.0Cr_5.0N₄ make this compound a hopeful candidate for new high performance permanent magnets.