Abstract
Cobaltites show intriguing magnetic and transport properties, when compared with manganites for instance, as they exhibit an additional degree of freedom: the spin state of the Co ions. For Nd0.5Sr0.5CoO3 this spin configuration is not well-established, as well as the magnetic ordering below the Curie temperature. Thus, in the present effort, magnetization measurements and a mean-field theoretical model were developed in order to understand in detail these aspects of the half-doped Nd0.5Sr0.5CoO3 cobaltite. These results show that the Co and Nd magnetic sub-lattices couple antiferromagnetically below Curie temperature Tc=215K down to very low temperature. These findings clarify the presence of the plateau observed at 80K on M(T) curve, which is erroneously attributed, in the literature, to the onset of an antiferromagnetic ordering. Magnetization data also clearly shows that Co3+ and Co4+ are in an intermediate spin state. In addition, experimental and theoretical magnetic entropy changes were determined and a comparative analysis among these two leads to ratify the results above claimed. Finally, from all those results, a magnetic phase diagram for Nd0.5Sr0.5CoO3. could be drawn.
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