Scattering of Carriers by Magnetic Mn Impurities in PbTe: Mn Alloys

Abstract

The carrier mobility and the spin exchange between carriers and localized magnetic Mn impurities are studied in $p$-type PbTe: Mn alloys. Using helicon propagation, the mobility measurements lead to a value for the total manganese impurity cross section ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{\mathrm{scatt}}=5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}16}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$. The linewidth of the Mn electron spin resonance is studied as a function of temperature, number of carriers, and manganese concentration. The carrier-dependent linewidth is explained in terms of a Korringa mechanism. From this analysis, the exchange constant $J=0.07$ eV is deduced. From this value of $J$, the spin-flip scattering cross section ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{\mathrm{sf}}=4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}19}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$ is calculated.