Magnetoelectric Coupling through the Spin Flop Transition inNi3TeO6

We combined high field optical spectroscopy and first principles calculations to analyze the electronic structure of ${\mathrm{Ni}}_{3}{\mathrm{TeO}}_{6}$ across the 53 K and 9 T magnetic transitions, both of which are accompanied by large changes in electric polarization. The color properties are sensitive to magnetic order due to field-induced changes in the crystal field environment, with those around Ni1 and Ni2 most affected. These findings advance the understanding of magnetoelectric coupling in materials in which magnetic $3d$ centers coexist with nonmagnetic heavy chalcogenide cations.