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Title: Pinning, rotation, and metastability of BiFeO 3 cycloidal domains in a magnetic field

Abstract

Earlier models for the room-temperature multiferroic BiFeO3 implicitly assumed that a very strong anisotropy restricts the domain wave vectors q to the threefold-symmetric axis normal to the static polarization P. However, recent measurements demonstrate that the domain wave vectors q rotate within the hexagonal plane normal to P away from the magnetic field orientation m. In this paper, we show that the previously neglected threefold anisotropy K3 restricts the wave vectors to lie along the threefold axis in zero field. Taking m to lie along a threefold axis, the domain with q parallel to m remains metastable below Bc1≈7 T. Due to the pinning of domains by nonmagnetic impurities, the wave vectors of the other two domains start to rotate away from m above 5.6 T, when the component of the torque τ=M×B along P exceeds a threshold value τpin. Since τ=0 when m⊥q, the wave vectors of those domains never become completely perpendicular to the magnetic field. Our results explain recent measurements of the critical field as a function of field orientation, small-angle neutron scattering measurements of the wave vectors, as well as spectroscopic measurements with m along a threefold axis. Finally, the model developed in this paper alsomore » explains how the three multiferroic domains of BiFeO3 for a fixed P can be manipulated by a magnetic field.« less

Authors:
 [1]
  1. Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Materials Science and Technology Division
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
OSTI Identifier:
1422612
Alternate Identifier(s):
OSTI ID: 1415531
Grant/Contract Number:  
AC05-00OR22725
Resource Type:
Journal Article: Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Physical Review. B
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 97; Journal Issue: 1; Journal ID: ISSN 2469-9950
Publisher:
American Physical Society (APS)
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY; antiferromagnetism; domains; magnetic anisotropy; condensed matter & materials physics

Citation Formats

Fishman, Randy S. Pinning, rotation, and metastability of BiFeO3 cycloidal domains in a magnetic field. United States: N. p., 2018. Web. doi:10.1103/physrevb.97.014405.
Fishman, Randy S. Pinning, rotation, and metastability of BiFeO3 cycloidal domains in a magnetic field. United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.97.014405
Fishman, Randy S. 2018. "Pinning, rotation, and metastability of BiFeO3 cycloidal domains in a magnetic field". United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.97.014405. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1422612.
@article{osti_1422612,
title = {Pinning, rotation, and metastability of BiFeO3 cycloidal domains in a magnetic field},
author = {Fishman, Randy S.},
abstractNote = {Earlier models for the room-temperature multiferroic BiFeO3 implicitly assumed that a very strong anisotropy restricts the domain wave vectors q to the threefold-symmetric axis normal to the static polarization P. However, recent measurements demonstrate that the domain wave vectors q rotate within the hexagonal plane normal to P away from the magnetic field orientation m. In this paper, we show that the previously neglected threefold anisotropy K3 restricts the wave vectors to lie along the threefold axis in zero field. Taking m to lie along a threefold axis, the domain with q parallel to m remains metastable below Bc1≈7 T. Due to the pinning of domains by nonmagnetic impurities, the wave vectors of the other two domains start to rotate away from m above 5.6 T, when the component of the torque τ=M×B along P exceeds a threshold value τpin. Since τ=0 when m⊥q, the wave vectors of those domains never become completely perpendicular to the magnetic field. Our results explain recent measurements of the critical field as a function of field orientation, small-angle neutron scattering measurements of the wave vectors, as well as spectroscopic measurements with m along a threefold axis. Finally, the model developed in this paper also explains how the three multiferroic domains of BiFeO3 for a fixed P can be manipulated by a magnetic field.},
doi = {10.1103/physrevb.97.014405},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1422612}, journal = {Physical Review. B},
issn = {2469-9950},
number = 1,
volume = 97,
place = {United States},
year = {Wed Jan 03 00:00:00 EST 2018},
month = {Wed Jan 03 00:00:00 EST 2018}
}

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Free Publicly Available Full Text
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Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 9 works
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Figures / Tables:

FIG. 1: FIG. 1:: A hexagonal plane normal to Z with the magnetic field taken to lie along X. In zero field, three domains with wave vectors qk are stable. Wave vectors q1 and q3 rotate towards Ym with increasing field. A domain with wave vector q′Y is stable abovemore » Bc2 in the absence of pinning. Below Bc1, the domain with wave vector q2 is metastable.« less

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Works referencing / citing this record:

Figures/Tables have been extracted from DOE-funded journal article accepted manuscripts.