Orbital and spin moment in CoO

TL;DR

This paper calculates the orbital and spin magnetic moments of Co2+ in CoO using a quasi-atomic approach, accounting for spin-orbit coupling and crystal fields, and compares results with recent experimental data.

Contribution

It introduces a method that successfully computes the orbital moment in CoO, addressing limitations of previous theoretical approaches.

Findings

Orbital moment at 0 K is 1.38 μ_B, constituting over 34% of the total magnetic moment.

The calculated L/S ratio is 1.04, aligning closely with experimental values.

The approach effectively incorporates intra-atomic interactions to match observed magnetic properties.

Abstract

The orbital and spin moment of the Co2+ ion in CoO has been calculated within the quasi-atomic approach with taking into account the intra-atomic spin-orbit coupling and crystal field interactions. The orbital moment of 1.38 m_B amounts at 0 K, in the magnetically-ordered state, to more than 34% of the total moment 4.02 m_B and yields the L/S ratio of 1.04, close to the recent experimental value. This paper has been motivated by a recent paper in Phys. Rev. B 65 (2002) 125111, in which a presented theoretical approach was unable to calculate the orbital moment. PACS No: 71.70.E; 75.10.D Keywords: crystal field, spin-orbit coupling, orbital moment, CoO