Evidence of multifunctional properties of ferromanganite La0.5Ca0.5Mn0.5Fe0.5O3

Abstract

Synthesis and characterization of the magnetic and electrical properties of the perovskite-type ferro-magnetite La0.5Ca0.5Mn0.5Fe0.5O3 are reported. Structural analysis reveals crystallization of the material in an orthorhombic structure, space group Pbnm (#62). The optical response suggests semiconductor-type behavior with bandgap Eg=2.3 eV. Susceptibility curves as a function of temperature and magnetization as a function of applied field suggest a soft ferromagnetic type response below room temperature, with evidence of disorder characterized by magnetic irreversibility at low temperatures and low applied fields. Resistivity measurements as a function of temperature and corroborate the semiconductor nature of the material and hysteretic I-V curves enhance its applicability in programmable logic memory devices. Band structure calculations around the Fermi level result in two different band gap values for the two spin up and spin down polarizations, as expected in ferromagnetic semiconductor materials. The hybridizations observed in the density of states curves as a function of energy suggest that the ferromagnetic character is due to double exchange mechanisms, coexisting with antiferromagnetic super-exchange, which is essentially due to the disorder of Fe3+ and Mn4+ cations in the octahedra along the three crystallographic axes.