A high-entropy form of $R$Mn$_6$Sn$_6$ with distinct magnetotransport regimes correlated to different magnetic structures
The kagome $R$Mn$_6$Sn$_6$ material family has attracted significant attention as high-temperature metallic magnets with a host of different magnetic orderings and anisotropy. Theoretical studies point to the rare-earth ($R$) as the determining factor for both the direction of magnetic anisotropy and the type of magnetic ordering in a given compound. This motivates studying high-entropy forms of $R$Mn$_6$Sn$_6$ to examine how the interplay of several rare-earth elements leads to different magnetic states in a single crystal. Here, we present a rare-earth mix of Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, and Lu that produces phase transitions from a paramagnet to an easy-plane ferrimagnet (FiM) below $T_{\text{C}}$ = 380 K, then to a FiM easy-axis state at $T_{\text{SR1}}$ = 207 K, to a canted FiM ground state below $T_{\text{SR2}}$ = 79 K. This behavior is consistent with previously reported high-entropy $R$Mn$_6$Sn$_6$ compounds; however, uniquely, the rare-earth mix studied here exhibits a broad transition from easy-plane to easy-axis anisotropy from 270 K to 170 K, and reveals a nonmonotonic magnetoresistance. Using neutron scattering data, we found that both observations correlate with an incommensurate modulated contribution to the spin state due to competing rare-earth interactions. This magnetoresistive behavior and the correlated spin structures underscore the potential for rare-earth engineering of magnetism.