113 research outputs found
Microscopic Model and Phase Diagrams of the Multiferroic Perovskite Manganites
Orthorhombically distorted perovskite manganites, RMnO3 with R being a
trivalent rare-earth ion, exhibit a variety of magnetic and electric phases
including multiferroic (i.e. concurrently magnetic and ferroelectric) phases
and fascinating magnetoelectric phenomena. We theoretically study the phase
diagram of RMnO3 by constructing a microscopic spin model, which includes not
only the superexchange interaction but also the single-ion anisotropy (SIA) and
the Dzyaloshinsky-Moriya interaction (DMI). Analysis of this model using the
Monte-Carlo method reproduces the experimental phase diagrams as functions of
the R-ion radius, which contain two different multiferroic states, i.e. the
ab-plane spin cycloid with ferroelectric polarization P//a and the bc-plane
spin cycloid with P//c. The orthorhombic lattice distortion or the
second-neighbor spin exchanges enhanced by this distortion exquisitely controls
the keen competition between these two phases through tuning the SIA and DMI
energies. This leads to a lattice-distortion-induced reorientation of P from a
to c in agreement with the experiments. We also discuss spin structures in the
A-type antiferromagnetic state, those in the cycloidal spin states, origin and
nature of the sinusoidal collinear spin state, and many other issues.Comment: 23 pages, 19 figures. Recalculated results after correcting errors in
the assignment of Dzyaloshinsky-Moriya vector
Disproportionation and electronic phase separation in parent manganite LaMnO_3
Nominally pure undoped parent manganite LaMnO_3 exhibits a puzzling behavior
inconsistent with a simple picture of an A-type antiferromagnetic insulator
(A-AFI) with a cooperative Jahn-Teller ordering. We do assign its anomalous
properties to charge transfer instabilities and competition between insulating
A-AFI phase and metallic-like dynamically disproportionated phase formally
separated by a first-order phase transition at T_{disp}=T_{JT}\approx 750 K.
The unconventional high-temperature phase is addressed to be a specific
electron-hole Bose liquid (EHBL) rather than a simple "chemically"
disproportionated R(Mn^{2+}Mn^{4+})O_3 phase. New phase does nucleate as a
result of the charge transfer (CT) instability and evolves from the
self-trapped CT excitons, or specific EH-dimers, which seem to be a precursor
of both insulating and metallic-like ferromagnetic phases observed in
manganites. We arrive at highly frustrated system of triplet (e_g^2)^3A_{2g}
bosons moving in a lattice formed by hole Mn^{4+} centers. Starting with
different experimental data we have reproduced a typical temperature dependence
of the volume fraction of high-temperature mixed-valent EHBL phase. We argue
that a slight nonisovalent substitution, photo-irradiation, external pressure
or magnetic field gives rise to an electronic phase separation with a
nucleation or an overgrowth of EH-droplets. Such a scenario provides a
comprehensive explanation of numerous puzzling properties observed in parent
and nonisovalently doped manganite LaMnO_3 including an intriguing
manifestation of superconducting fluctuations.Comment: 20 pages, 8 figure
Collinear-to-Spiral Spin Transformation without Changing Modulation Wavelength upon Ferroelectric Transition in Tb1-xDyxMnO3
Lattice modulation and magnetic structures in magnetoelectric compounds
Tb1-xDyxMnO3 have been studied around the ferroelectric (FE) Curie temperature
T_C by x-ray and neutron diffraction. Temperature-independent modulation
vectors through T_C are observed for the compounds with 0.50< x < 0.68. This
indicates that ferroelectricity with a polarization (P) along the c axis in the
RMnO3 series cannot be ascribed to such an incommensurate-commensurate
transition of an antiferromagnetic order as was previously anticipated. Neutron
diffraction study of a single crystal with x=0.59 shows that the FE transition
is accompanied by the transformation of the Mn-spin alignment from sinusoidal
(collinear) antiferromagnetism into a transverse spiral structure. The observed
spiral structure below T_C is expected to produce P along the c axis with the
`inverse' Dzialoshinski-Moriya interaction, which is consistent with the
observation.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figure
Theory of magnetic field-induced metaelectric critical end point in BiMnO
A recent experiment on the multiferroic BiMnO compound under a strong
applied magnetic field revealed a rich phase diagram driven by the coupling of
magnetic and charge (dipolar) degrees of freedom. Based on the
exchange-striction mechanism, we propose here a theoretical model with the
intent to capture the interplay of the spin and dipolar moments in the presence
of a magnetic field in BiMnO. Experimentally observed behavior of the
dielectric constants, magnetic susceptibility, and the polarization is, for the
most part, reproduced by our model. The critical behavior observed near the
polarization reversal point in the phase diagram is interpreted as
arising from the proximity to the critical end point.Comment: Theory; relevant experiment uploaded as arXiv:0810.190
Magnetoelectric coupling in polycrystalline FeVO4
We report coupling between magnetic and electric orders for antiferromagnetic
polycrystalline FeVO4 in which magnetism-induced polarization has been recently
found in noncollinear antiferromagnetic state below the second
antiferromagnetic phase transition at TN2=15.7K. In this low symmetry phase
space group P-1, the magnetic field dependence of electric polarization
evidences a clear magnetoelectric coupling in the noncollinear spin-configured
antiferromagnetic phase. The discontinuity of magnetodielectric effect observed
at the vicinity of the polar to nonpolar transition evidences competition
between different magnetodielectric couplings in the two different
antiferromagnetic states. The existence of thermal expansion anomaly near TN2
and magnetostriction effect support magnetoelastically mediated scenario of the
observed magnetoelectric effect.Comment: 4 pages, 6 figures, Phys. Rev. B 80, 172103 (2009
Anomalous thermal expansion and strong damping of the thermal conductivity of NdMnO and TbMnO due to 4f crystal-field excitations
We present measurements of the thermal conductivity and the thermal
expansion of NdMnO and TbMnO. In both compounds a splitting of
the multiplet of the ion causes Schottky contributions to
. In TbMnO this contribution arises from a crystal-field splitting,
while in NdMnO it is due to the Nd-Mn exchange coupling. Another
consequence of this coupling is a strongly enhanced canting of the Mn moments.
The thermal conductivity is greatly suppressed in both compounds. The main
scattering process at low temperatures is resonant scattering of phonons
between different energy levels of the multiplets, whereas the complex 3d
magnetism of the Mn ions is of minor importance.Comment: 9 pages including 6 figure
Magnetoelectric Effect and Spontaneous Polarization in HoFe(BO) and HoNdFe(BO)
The thermodynamic, magnetic, dielectric, and magnetoelectric properties of
HoFe(BO) and HoNdFe(BO) are
investigated. Both compounds show a second order Ne\'{e}l transition above 30 K
and a first order spin reorientation transition below 10 K.
HoFe(BO) develops a spontaneous electrical polarization below the
Ne\'{e}l temperature (T) which is diminished in external magnetic fields.
No magnetoelectric effect could be observed in HoFe(BO). In
contrast, the solid solution HoNdFe(BO) exhibits
both, a spontaneous polarization below T and a magnetoelectric effect at
higher fields that extends to high temperatures. The superposition of
spontaneous polarization, induced by the internal magnetic field in the ordered
state, and the magnetoelectric polarizations due to the external field results
in a complex behavior of the total polarization measured as a function of
temperature and field.Comment: 12 pages, 15 figure
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