Realization of Large Electric Polarization and Strong Magnetoelectric Coupling in BiMn₃Cr₄O₁₂

Journal Article · 09 October 2017 · Advanced Materials

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.201703435 · OSTI ID:1485321

Zhou, Long ^[1]; Dai, Jianhong ^[1]; Chai, Yisheng ^[1]; Zhang, Huimin ^[2]; Dong, Shuai ^[2]; Cao, Huibo  ^[3]; Calder, Stuart A.  ^[3]; Yin, Yunyu ^[1]; Wang, Xiao ^[1]; Shen, Xudong ^[1]; Liu, Zhehong ^[1]; Saito, Takashi ^[4]; Shimakawa, Yuichi ^[4]; Hojo, Hajime ^[5]; Ikuhara, Yuichi ^[6]; Azuma, Masaki ^[5]; Hu, Zhiwei ^[7]; Sun, Young ^[1]; Jin, Changqing ^[8]; Long, Youwen  ^[8]

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1. Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing (China); Univ. of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing (China)
2. Southeast Univ., Nanjing (China)
3. Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
4. Kyoto Univ., Kyoto (Japan)
5. Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama (Japan)
6. Univ. of Tokyo, Tokyo (Japan)
7. Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Dresden (Germany)
8. Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing (China); Univ. of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing (China); Collaborative Innovation Center of Quantum Matter, Beijing (China)

Here, magnetoelectric multiferroics have received much attention in the past decade due to their interesting physics and promising multifunctional performance. For practical applications, simultaneous large ferroelectric polarization and strong magnetoelectric coupling are preferred. However, these two properties have not been found to be compatible in the single–phase multiferroic materials discovered as yet. Here, it is shown that superior multiferroic properties exist in the A–site ordered perovskite BiMn₃Cr₄O₁₂ synthesized under high–pressure and high–temperature conditions. The compound experiences a ferroelectric phase transition ascribed to the 6s² lone–pair effects of Bi³⁺ at around 135 K, and a long–range antiferromagnetic order related to the Cr³⁺ spins around 125 K, leading to the presence of a type–I multiferroic phase with huge electric polarization. On further cooling to 48 K, a type–II multiferroic phase induced by the special spin structure composed of both Mn– and Cr–sublattices emerges, accompanied by considerable magnetoelectric coupling. BiMn₃Cr₄O₁₂ thus provides a rare example of joint multiferroicity, where two different types of multiferroic phases develop subsequently so that both large polarization and significant magnetoelectric effect are achieved in a single–phase multiferroic material.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES) (SC-22)
• Grant/Contract Number: AC05-00OR22725
• OSTI ID: 1485321
• Journal Information: Advanced Materials, Journal Name: Advanced Materials Journal Issue: 44 Vol. 29; ISSN 0935-9648
• Publisher: WileyCopyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English