Crystal spacing predicts magnetic states in complex alloys better than electron count
In materials chemistry, identifying common parameters that can organize magnetic ground states across complex intermetallic compounds remains a central challenge. Researchers have long used chemically tunable parameters to control magnetic properties. One is valence-electron concentration, commonly discussed as the electron-per-atom (e/a) ratio. The e/a ratio has been widely used to classify…
A research team led by Tokyo University of Science Assistant Professor Farid Labib and Tohoku University Associate Professor Kazuhiro Nawa has discovered that the lattice parameter, rather than the electron-per-atom ratio, is a more reliable parameter for predicting magnetic ground states in Tsai-type intermetallic compounds. After synthesizing a family of Au–(Al/Ga)-based 1/1 approximant crystals containing terbium, dysprosium, and holmium, the researchers found a nearly monotonic inverse correlation between the lattice parameter and valence-electron concentration.
They observed characteristic whirling antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic orders associated with strong uniaxial magnetic anisotropy, with the magnetic ground states transitioning at specific lattice parameter thresholds. This unified structural descriptor can guide the development of novel materials with targeted magnetic properties.
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