First-Principles Investigation of Half-Metallic Ferromagnetism of a New 1:1:1:1 Type Quaternary Heusler Compound YRhTiSi

Abstract

First-principles theory was applied to study the electronic, magnetic, and half-metallic behaviors of a new Y-based equiatomic quaternary Heusler compound YRhTiSi. We will come to study the physical properties of this compound and find it has the half-metallic nature in the ferromagnetic (FM) state. The total magnetic moment of this compound YRhTiSi is 2 μB, which follows the famous Slater-Pauling rule, Mt = Zt − 18, Mt is the total magnetic moment and Zt is the total number of valence electrons. Based on its equilibrium and strained lattice constants, the magnetic and half-metallic behaviors of this compound have been discussed in detail. And we find that the H–M gap and the band gap can be regulated through the effect of uniform strain and the tetragonal deformation. A large H–M gap of 0.48 eV has been found in our work, which is nearly larger than any previous study. Furthermore, the formation and cohesive energies have also been discussed in our work to examine the phase stability of YRhTiSi. This theoretical investigation provides further insight into the application of Y-based compounds as spintronic materials.