Local ordering and magnetism in Ga{sub 0.9}Fe{sub 3.1}N

Journal Article · Thu Sep 15 00:00:00 EDT 2011 · Journal of Solid State Chemistry

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jssc.2011.06.031· OSTI ID:21580271

Burghaus, Jens ^[1]; Moechel, Anne ^[2]; Houben, Andreas ^[1]; Dronskowski, Richard ^[1]

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1. Institut fuer Anorganische Chemie, RWTH Aachen University, Landoltweg 1, D-52056 Aachen (Germany)
2. Faculty of Science, Universite de Liege, B-4000 Liege (Belgium)

Prior investigations of the ternary nitride series Ga{sub 1-x}Fe{sub 3+x}N (0{<=}x{<=}1) have indicated a transition from ferromagnetic {gamma}'-Fe{sub 4}N to antiferromagnetic 'GaFe{sub 3}N'. The ternary nitride 'GaFe{sub 3}N' has been magnetically and spectroscopically reinvestigated in order to explore the weakening of the ferromagnetic interactions through the gradual incorporation of gallium into {gamma}'-Fe{sub 4}N. A hysteretic loop at RT reveals the presence of a minority phase of only 0.1-0.2 at%, in accord with the sound two-step synthesis. The composition of the gallium-richest phase 'GaFe{sub 3}N' was clarified by Prompt Gamma-ray Activation Analysis and leads to the berthollide formula Ga{sub 0.91(1)}Fe{sub 3.09(10)}N{sub 1.05(7)}. Magnetic measurements indicate a transition around 8 K, further supported by Moessbauer spectral data. The weakening of the ferromagnetic coupling through an increasing gallium concentration is explained by a simple Stoner argument. In Ga{sub 0.9}Fe{sub 3.1}N, the presence of iron on the gallium site affects the magnetism by the formation of 13-atom iron clusters. - Graphical Abstract: The crystal structure of GaFe{sub 3}N with green nitrogen atoms in the very center, red iron atoms at the face centers, and gray gallium atoms at the corner positions. Highlights: > Almost phase-pure synthesis of Ga{sub 0.9}Fe{sub 3.1}N. > Prompt gamma-ray activation analysis yields precise composition. > Magnetic ordering of the facial Fe atoms at the lowest temperatures. > Moessbauer spectroscopy suggests percolation or RKKY-type interaction. > Fe{sub 13} clusters due to berthollide character.

• OSTI ID: 21580271
• Journal Information: Journal of Solid State Chemistry, Vol. 184, Issue 9; Other Information: DOI: 10.1016/j.jssc.2011.06.031; PII: S0022-4596(11)00359-8; Copyright (c) 2011 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam, The Netherlands, All rights reserved.; ISSN 0022-4596
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

37 INORGANIC
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
ACTIVATION ANALYSIS
ANTIFERROMAGNETISM
ATOMS
COUPLING
CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
GALLIUM
GAMMA RADIATION
INTERACTIONS
IRON
IRON NITRIDES
MAGNETIZATION
MOESSBAUER EFFECT
SYNTHESIS
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ELEMENTS
IONIZING RADIATIONS
IRON COMPOUNDS
MAGNETISM
METALS
NITRIDES
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
NONDESTRUCTIVE ANALYSIS
PNICTIDES
RADIATIONS
TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS