Domain Wall Patterning and Giant Response Functions in Ferrimagnetic Spinels
Scientific Achievement
A mesoscale patterning of magnetostructural domain walls was observed in the bulk of strained crystals of Mn3O4 and MnV2O4. These patterns dissipated with applied magnetic fields above a critical depinning field, where large magnetocapacitances were also observed.
Significance and Impact
Changes in the magnetic or electronic properties of materials in response to applied fields are foundational to device physics. This work shows that such responses can be enhanced by manipulating domain walls with strain, opening a new approach to engineering magnetic sensors or memory elements.
Research Details
- Patterning of domain walls in single crystals of Mn3O4 and MnV2O4 was characterized via small-angle neutron scattering (SANS).
- Wide-Angle Neutron Diffraction mapped lattice strains associated with different structural domains in the bulk.
- Bulk magnetic and magnetodielectric measurements revealed effects of magnetostructural domain-wall patterning on functional behavior.
“Domain Wall Patterning and Giant Response Functions in Ferrimagnetic Spinels”
Lazar L. Kish, Alex Thaler, Minseong Lee, Alexander V. Zakrzewski, Dalmau Reig-i-Plessis, Brian A. Wolin, Xu Wang, Kenneth C. Littrell, Raffi Budakian, Haidong Zhou, Zheng Gai, Matthias D. Frontzek, Vivien S. Zapf, Adam A. Aczel, Lisa DeBeer-Schmitt, and Gregory J. MacDougall,
Advanced Science 8, 2101402 (2021). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202101402
