Local structural distortions drive magnetic molecular field in compositionally complex spinel oxide

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Nevgi, Rukma, Dey, Subha, Bhattacharya, Nandana, Ershadrad, Soheil, Dan, Tinku, Chakravarty, Sujay, Kaushik, S. D., Klewe, Christoph, Sterbinsky, George E., Sanyal, Biplab, Middey, Srimanta
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Nevgi, Rukma
Dey, Subha
Bhattacharya, Nandana
Ershadrad, Soheil
Dan, Tinku
Chakravarty, Sujay
Kaushik, S. D.
Klewe, Christoph
Sterbinsky, George E.
Sanyal, Biplab
Middey, Srimanta
author_facet Nevgi, Rukma
Dey, Subha
Bhattacharya, Nandana
Ershadrad, Soheil
Dan, Tinku
Chakravarty, Sujay
Kaushik, S. D.
Klewe, Christoph
Sterbinsky, George E.
Sanyal, Biplab
Middey, Srimanta
contents Understanding how local distortions determine the functional properties of high entropy materials, containing five or more elements at a crystallographic site, is an open challenge. We address this for a compositionally complex spinel oxide (Mn$_{0.2}$Co$_{0.2}$Ni$_{0.2}$Cu$_{0.2}$Zn$_{0.2}$)Cr$_2$O$_4$ ($A^5$Cr$_2$O$_4$). By comparatively examining extended X-ray absorption fine structure on $A^5$Cr$_2$O$_4$ and its parent counterparts $A$Cr$_2$O$_4$ along with density functional theory calculations for multiple configurations, we find that the element-specific distortions go beyond the first neighbor. Specifically, the strong Jahn-Teller distortion present in CuCr$_2$O$_4$ is found to be completely suppressed in $A^5$Cr$_2$O$_4$. Instead, there is a broad distribution of Cu-O and Cu-Cr bond distances while other $A$-O distances acquire certain specific values. This study demonstrates the additional flexibility of a cationic sublattice in maintaining a uniform long-range structure, in contrast to previous reports showing only the accommodative anionic sublattice. Remarkably, despite the presence of multiple magnetic ions and variable bond lengths, the mean field magnetic interactions of $A^5$Cr$_2$O$_4$ exhibit a striking resemblance to those of NiCr$_2$O$_4$. This compelling observation originates from the comparability of bond lengths around Cr in both materials. Our study paves the way for a deeper understanding of the impact of local structural distortions in compositionally complex quantum materials, enabling the targeted design with tailored properties.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2406_01156
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Local structural distortions drive magnetic molecular field in compositionally complex spinel oxide
Nevgi, Rukma
Dey, Subha
Bhattacharya, Nandana
Ershadrad, Soheil
Dan, Tinku
Chakravarty, Sujay
Kaushik, S. D.
Klewe, Christoph
Sterbinsky, George E.
Sanyal, Biplab
Middey, Srimanta
Materials Science
Strongly Correlated Electrons
Understanding how local distortions determine the functional properties of high entropy materials, containing five or more elements at a crystallographic site, is an open challenge. We address this for a compositionally complex spinel oxide (Mn$_{0.2}$Co$_{0.2}$Ni$_{0.2}$Cu$_{0.2}$Zn$_{0.2}$)Cr$_2$O$_4$ ($A^5$Cr$_2$O$_4$). By comparatively examining extended X-ray absorption fine structure on $A^5$Cr$_2$O$_4$ and its parent counterparts $A$Cr$_2$O$_4$ along with density functional theory calculations for multiple configurations, we find that the element-specific distortions go beyond the first neighbor. Specifically, the strong Jahn-Teller distortion present in CuCr$_2$O$_4$ is found to be completely suppressed in $A^5$Cr$_2$O$_4$. Instead, there is a broad distribution of Cu-O and Cu-Cr bond distances while other $A$-O distances acquire certain specific values. This study demonstrates the additional flexibility of a cationic sublattice in maintaining a uniform long-range structure, in contrast to previous reports showing only the accommodative anionic sublattice. Remarkably, despite the presence of multiple magnetic ions and variable bond lengths, the mean field magnetic interactions of $A^5$Cr$_2$O$_4$ exhibit a striking resemblance to those of NiCr$_2$O$_4$. This compelling observation originates from the comparability of bond lengths around Cr in both materials. Our study paves the way for a deeper understanding of the impact of local structural distortions in compositionally complex quantum materials, enabling the targeted design with tailored properties.
title Local structural distortions drive magnetic molecular field in compositionally complex spinel oxide
topic Materials Science
Strongly Correlated Electrons
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2406.01156