Experimental evidence of the crucial role of nonmagnetic Pb cations in the enhancement of the Néel temperature in perovskitePb1−xBaxFe1/2Nb1/2O3

Abstract

Our experimental study of ${\text{Pb}}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}{\text{Ba}}_{x}{\text{Fe}}_{1/2}{\text{Nb}}_{1/2}{\text{O}}_{3}$ shows that, the N\'eel temperature in this solid solution drops down at $x\ensuremath{\approx}0.15/0.20$, and, at the same threshold, the polarization also looses its long-range order. Thus, the multifunctional solid solution studied demonstrates a possibility of simultaneous controlling the magnetic and ferroelectric properties by changing the concentration of only lead, which is a nonmagnetic ion.