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arXiv · 2305.03087

4d-element induced improvement of structural disorder and development of weakly re-entrant spin-glass behaviour in NiRuMnSn

Abstract

The pursuit of efficient spin-polarization in quaternary Heusler alloys with the general formula $XX'YZ$ (where X, $X'$, and Y are transition metals and Z is a p-block element), has been a subject of significant scientific interest. While previous studies shows that isoelectronic substitution of 4d element in place of 3d element in quaternary Heusler alloy, improves the half-metallic ferromagnetic characteristics, our research on the quaternary Heusler alloy NiRuMnSn reveals a strikingly different scenario. In this study, we present a detailed structural analysis of the material using X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) and neutron diffraction (ND) techniques, which confirms the formation of a single-phase compound with 50:50 site disorder between Ni/Ru atoms at 4c/4d sites. Contrary to expectations, our DFT calculations suggests a considerable decrease in spin-polarization even in the ordered structure. Additionally, we report on the compound's exceptional behavior, displaying a rare re-entrant spin glass property below $\sim$60 K, a unique and intriguing feature for quaternary Heusler-type compounds.

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Shuvankar Gupta, Sudip Chakraborty, Vidha Bhasin, Santanu Pakhira, Anis Biswas, Yaroslav Mudryk, Amit Kumar, Celine Barreteau, Jean-Claude Crivello, Amitabh Das, S. N. Jha, D. Bhattacharyya, Vitalij K. Pecharsky, Eric Alleno, Chandan Mazumdar. 2023-05-04. 4d-element induced improvement of structural disorder and development of weakly re-entrant spin-glass behaviour in NiRuMnSn. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.108.054405

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