Chen Lei, Zhao Weiyao, Wang Zhaocai, Tang Fang, Fang Yong, Zeng Zhuo, Xia Zhengcai, Cheng Zhenxiang, Cortie David L, Rule Kirrily C, Wang Xiaolin, Zheng Renkui
School of Physics and Materials Science, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, China.
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Innovation Campus, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia.
Materials (Basel). 2023 Feb 20;16(4):1736. doi: 10.3390/ma16041736.
High-quality NdCrSb single crystals are grown using a Sn-flux method, for electronic transport and magnetic structure study. Ferromagnetic ordering of the Nd and Cr magnetic sublattices are observed at different temperatures and along different crystallographic axes. Due to the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction between the two magnetic sublattices, the Cr moments rotate from the axis to the axis upon cooling, resulting in a spin reorientation (SR) transition. The SR transition is reflected by the temperature-dependent magnetization curves, e.g., the Cr moments rotate from the axis to the axis with cooling from 20 to 9 K, leading to a decrease in the -axis magnetization f and an increase in the -axis magnetization. Our elastic neutron scattering along the axis shows decreasing intensity of magnetic (300) peak upon cooling from 20 K, supporting the SR transition. Although the magnetization of two magnetic sublattices favours different crystallographic axes and shows significant anisotropy in magnetic and transport behaviours, their moments are all aligned to the field direction at sufficiently large fields (30 T). Moreover, the magnetic structure within the SR transition region is relatively fragile, which results in negative magnetoresistance by applying magnetic fields along either or axis. The metallic NdCrSb single crystal with two ferromagnetic sublattices is an ideal system to study the magnetic interactions, as well as their influences on the electronic transport properties.
采用锡助熔剂法生长高质量的钕铬锑（NdCrSb）单晶，用于电子输运和磁结构研究。在不同温度和沿不同晶轴观察到钕（Nd）和铬（Cr）磁性亚晶格的铁磁有序排列。由于两个磁性亚晶格之间的Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya相互作用，Cr磁矩在冷却时从 轴旋转到 轴，导致自旋重取向（SR）转变。SR转变由温度依赖的磁化曲线反映，例如，Cr磁矩在从20 K冷却到9 K时从 轴旋转到 轴，导致 轴磁化强度f降低， 轴磁化强度增加。我们沿 轴的弹性中子散射表明，从20 K冷却时，磁性（300）峰的强度降低，支持了SR转变。尽管两个磁性亚晶格的磁化倾向于不同的晶轴，并且在磁行为和输运行为中表现出显著的各向异性，但在足够大的磁场（30 T）下，它们的磁矩都与磁场方向对齐。此外，SR转变区域内的磁结构相对脆弱，这通过沿 轴或 轴施加磁场导致负磁阻。具有两个铁磁亚晶格的金属NdCrSb单晶是研究磁相互作用及其对电子输运性质影响的理想体系。
