Anomaly in Nonlinear Magnetoelectric Response of YbMnO3

TL;DR

This paper investigates the nonlinear magnetoelectric response of YbMnO3 near its magnetic transition, revealing a universal scaling behavior linked to phase competition, explained through Landau theory.

Contribution

It introduces a phenomenological Landau model to explain the universal scaling and anomaly shape in the nonlinear magnetoelectric response of YbMnO3.

Findings

Data collapse onto a single universal curve after rescaling.

The anomaly results from competition between two magnetic phases.

Landau theory successfully explains the observed behavior.

Abstract

We observe a seemingly complex magnetic field dependence of dielectric constant of hexagonal YbMnO3 near the spin ordering temperature. After rescaling, the data taken at different temperatures and magnetic fields collapse on a single curve describing the sharp anomaly in nonlinear magnetoelectric response at the magnetic transition. We show that this anomaly is a result of the competition between two magnetic phases. The scaling and the shape of the anomaly are explained using the phenomenological Landau description of the competing phases in hexagonal manganites.