Low Temperature Magnetic Studies on PbFe0.5Nb0.5O3 Multiferroic

TL;DR

This study synthesizes and characterizes PbFe0.5Nb0.5O3, revealing its antiferromagnetic and spin-glass transitions through neutron diffraction and magnetic measurements, contributing to understanding its multiferroic properties.

Contribution

First single-phase synthesis of PFN using solid state reaction, with detailed magnetic and structural analysis including neutron diffraction and Rietveld refinement.

Findings

PFN exhibits antiferromagnetic ordering below 150 K.

A spin-glass like transition occurs around 10 K.

Magnetic structure is G-type antiferromagnetic.

Abstract

The PbFe0.5Nb0.5O3 (PFN), a well-known A(B'1/2B"1/2)O3 type multiferroic was successfully synthesized in single phase by a single step solid state reaction method. The single phase PFN was characterized through XRD, microstructure through SEM, and magnetic studies were carried out through temperature dependent vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) and neutron diffraction (ND) measurements. PFN exhibits a cusp at around 150 K in the temperature dependent magnetic susceptibility corresponding to the N\'eel temperature (TN1) and another peak around 10 K (TN2) corresponding to spin-glass like transition. In the temperature dependent ND studies, a magnetic Bragg peak appears at Q = 1.35 {\AA}-1 (where Q = 4{\pi}sin theeta/lambda, is called the scattering vector) below TN (150 K) implying antiferromagnetic (AFM) ordering in the system. On the basis of Rietveld analysis of the ND data at T = 2 K, the magnetic structure of PFN could be explained by a G-type antiferromagnetic structure.