1. Magnetic structure and exchange interactions in CuFe2(P2O7)2
- Author
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Thierry Roisnel, A. Boukhari, R. Cherkaoui, A. Boutfessi, Françoise Bourée, Juan Rodríguez-Carvajal, and N. El Khayati
- Subjects
Magnetic moment ,Magnetic structure ,Condensed matter physics ,Chemistry ,Neutron diffraction ,General Medicine ,Crystal structure ,General Chemistry ,Condensed Matter Physics ,Magnetic susceptibility ,Crystallography ,Superexchange ,Antiferromagnetism ,General Materials Science ,Ground state ,Néel temperature ,Monoclinic crystal system - Abstract
The compound CuFe2(P2O7)2 crystallises in the monoclinic system with space group P21/n. The crystal structure is characterised by the presence of centrosymmetric FeCuFe trimers with intra-trimer superexchange interactions. The magnetic interactions between trimers occur through super-superexchange paths consisting of PO4 groups connecting the trimers formed by FeO6 octahedra and square planar CuO4 groups. Susceptibility measurements indicate an antiferromagnetic behaviour at low temperature. Neutron powder diffraction confirms this and the determined Neel temperature is TN=15.5(5) K. The propagation vector of the magnetic structure is k =(1/2,0,1/2) , the ions inside a trimer are coupled ferromagnetically and the magnetic moments are all oriented along the b axis. The value of the staggered moments at 1.5 K are 0.83(6) and 4.88(4) μB for Cu2+ and Fe3+ ions, respectively. The conditions to be satisfied by the exchange interactions in order to get the observed magnetic structure as the stable ground state are discussed.
- Published
- 2002
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