Role of stacking defects on the magnetic behavior of CrCl₃

Journal Article · 22 October 2024 · Physical Review. B

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.110.144439 · OSTI ID:2483424

Schneeloch, John A.  ^[1]; Aczel, Adam A. ^[2]; Ye, Feng  ^[2]; Louca, Despina  ^[1]

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1. Univ. of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA (United States)
2. Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Here, in the study of van der Waals–layered magnetic materials, the properties of CrCl₃ continue to attract attention. This compound is reported to undergo antiferromagnetic ordering below ~14 K, with a ferromagneticlike region proposed to exist between 14 and 17 K. Ideally, the crystal structure is rhombohedral (R) below ~235 K, separated from a higher-temperature monoclinic (M) phase by a layer-sliding structural phase transition. However, the structural transition is often inhibited even in bulk single crystals, allowing M-type layer stacking, reported to have a 10-fold greater interlayer magnetic coupling than R-type stacking, to be present at low temperature. To clarify the effect of stacking defects on CrCl₃, we report magnetization measurements on samples of varying crystalline quality. At low applied magnetic field, some crystals predominantly show the T_N = 14 K peak, but other crystals show hysteretic behavior and a magnetization enhancement at a slightly higher temperature (14 < T ≲ 17 K.) Samples with anomalous behavior exhibit a transition around ~2 T in isothermal magnetization-field data, evidence that M-type stacking defects are the source of these anomalies. Ground powder samples are especially likely to show strongly anomalous behavior. We suggest that the anomalous behavior arises from few-layer magnetic domains that form just above T_N in an environment of mixed interlayer magnetic coupling strength. We argue that the influence of M-type stacking boundaries on sublattice magnetization is already observable in reported neutron scattering data, and may be responsible for an enhancement near 17 K in reported specific heat data.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Scientific User Facilities (SUF)
• Grant/Contract Number: AC05-00OR22725; FG02-01ER45927
• OSTI ID: 2483424
• Journal Information: Physical Review. B, Journal Name: Physical Review. B Journal Issue: 14 Vol. 110; ISSN 2469-9950
• Publisher: American Physical Society (APS)Copyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English