A New Spin on Material Properties: Local Magnetic Structure in Functional and Quantum Materials

TL;DR

This paper emphasizes the significance of local magnetic structures in functional and quantum materials and introduces the magnetic pair distribution function (mPDF) technique as a powerful method for analyzing short-range magnetism from neutron scattering data.

Contribution

It presents the mPDF technique as an advanced tool for studying local magnetic structures, with examples demonstrating its application to various magnetic materials.

Findings

mPDF effectively reveals short-range magnetic correlations

Application to MnTe, frustrated magnets, and nanoparticles shows diverse magnetic behaviors

mPDF has rapidly developed and gained impact over the past decade

Abstract

The past few decades have made clear that the properties and performances of emerging functional and quantum materials can depend strongly on their local atomic and/or magnetic structure, particularly when details of the local structure deviate from the long-range structure averaged over space and time. Traditional methods of structural refinement (e.g. Rietveld) are typically sensitive only to the average structure, creating a need for more advanced structural probes suitable for extracting information about structural correlations on short length- and time-scales. In this Perspective, we describe the importance of local magnetic structure in several classes of emerging materials and present the magnetic pair distribution function (mPDF) technique as a powerful tool for studying short-range magnetism from neutron total-scattering data. We then provide a selection of examples of mPDF analysis applied to magnetic materials of recent technological and fundamental interest, including the antiferromagnetic semiconductor MnTe, geometrically frustrated magnets, and iron-oxide magnetic nanoparticles. The rapid development of mPDF analysis since its formalization a decade ago puts this technique in a strong position for making continued impact in the study of local magnetism in emerging materials.