Multiferroic Effect Research Articles

Polarity-tunable spin transport in all-oxide multiferroic tunnel junctions.

A multiferroic tunnel junction (MFTJ) promisingly offers multinary memory states in response to electric- and magnetic-fields, referring to tunneling electroresistance (TER) and tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR), respectively. In spite of recent progress, a substantial number of questions concerning the understanding of these two intertwined phenomena still remain open, e.g. the role of microstructural/chemical asymmetry at the interfaces of the junction and the effect of an electrode material on the MFTJ properties. In this regard, we look into the multiferroic effect of all-complex-oxide MFTJ (La0.7Sr0.3MnO3/Pb(Zr0.3Ti0.7)O3/La0.7Sr0.3MnO3). The results reveal apparent TER-TMR interplay-captured by the reversible electric-field control of the TMR effect. Finally, microscopy analysis on the MFTJ revealed that the observed TER-TMR interplay is perhaps mediated by microstructural and chemical asymmetry in our nominally symmetric MFTJ.

Colossal magnetoelectric effect in 3-1 multiferroic nanocomposites originating from ultrafine nanodomain structures

We investigate colossal magnetoelectric coupling through interactions between ferroelectric and ferromagnetic nanodomains in 3-1 multiferroic BaTiO3/CoFe2O4 nanocomposites using a recent real-space phase field model based on the Landau-Ginzburg theory. A hierarchical ultrafine domain structure is characteristically formed in the nanocomposites, resulting in an extremely high density of domain walls, which causes polarization domains to be more susceptible to an external magnetic field via interfacial strain-mediation. This leads to an anomalously large magnetoelectric coupling effect in the multiferroic nanocomposites. We further demonstrate that the domain configuration and consequent magnetoelectric effect are strongly dependent on the constituent phase distribution, suggesting a promising route for the rational design of multiferroic domains and magnetoelectric effects, reminiscent of recent nano-metamaterial concepts.

Large directional optical anisotropy in multiferroic ferroborate

Many technological applications are based on electric or magnetic order of materials, for instance magnetic memory. Multiferroics are materials which exhibit electric and magnetic order simultaneously. Due to the coupling of electric and magnetic effects, these materials show a strong potential to control electricity and magnetism and, more generally, the properties and propagation of light. One of the most fascinating and counter-intuitive recent results in multiferroics is directional anisotropy, the asymmetry of light propagation with respect to the direction of propagation. The absorption in the material can be different for forward and backward propagation of light, which in extreme case may lead to complete suppression of absorption in one direction. Another remarkable effect in multiferroics is directional birefringence, i.e. different velocities of light for different directions of propagation. In this paper, we demonstrate giant directional birefringence in a multiferroic samarium ferroborate. The effect is easily observed for linear polarization of light in the range of millimeter-wavelengths, and survives down to very low frequencies. The dispersion and absorption close to the electromagnon resonance can be controlled and fully suppressed in one direction. Therefore, samarium ferroborate is a universal tool for optical control: with a magnetic field as an external parameter it allows switching between two functionalities: polarization rotation and directional anisotropy.

Linear antiferrodistortive-antiferromagnetic effect in multiferroics: Physical manifestations

Using the theory of symmetry and the microscopic model we predicted the possibility of a linear roto-antiferromagnetic effect in the perovskites with structural antiferrodistortive and antiferromagnetic long-range ordering and found the necessary conditions of its occurrence. The main physical manifestations of this effect are the smearing of the antiferromagnetic transition and the jump of the specific heat near it. In the absence of external fields linear roto-antiferromagnetic coupling can induce a weak antiferromagnetic ordering above the Neel temperature, but below the temperature of antiferrodistortive transition. Therefore, there is the possibility of observing weak antiferromagnetism in multiferroics such as bismuth ferrite (BiFeO3) at temperatures T>TN, for which the Neel temperature TN is about 645 K, and the antiferrodistortive transition temperature is about 1200 K. By quantitative comparison with experiment we made estimations of the linear roto-antiferromagnetic effect in the solid solutions of multiferroic Bi1-xRxFeO3 (R=La, Nd).

Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya Interaction and Spiral Order in Spin-orbit Coupled Optical Lattices

We show that the recent experimental realization of spin-orbit coupling in ultracold atomic gases can be used to study different types of spin spiral order and resulting multiferroic effects. Spin-orbit coupling in optical lattices can give rise to the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (DM) spin interaction which is essential for spin spiral order. By taking into account spin-orbit coupling and an external Zeeman field, we derive an effective spin model in the Mott insulator regime at half filling and demonstrate that the DM interaction in optical lattices can be made extremely strong with realistic experimental parameters. The rich finite temperature phase diagrams of the effective spin models for fermions and bosons are obtained via classical Monte Carlo simulations.

Spin-driven multiferroics in BaYFeO4

We report on the spin-driven multiferroic property and magnetoelectric effect in the lately synthesized compound BaYFeO4. Due to its peculiar crystal structure, the system exhibits complex magnetic phases with multiple transitions. The dielectric and pyroelectric measurements evidence a spin-driven multiferroic state raised by the cycloidal spin structure below T1 = 36 K. Strong magnetoelectric effect has also been observed in the multiferroic state. The origin of noncollinear cycloidal spin structure in BaYFeO4 is believed to arise from the interactions between low-dimensional magnetic columns.

Effect of metamagnetism on multiferroic property in double perovskite Sm2CoMnO6

The magnetic and multiferroic properties of a B-site ordered double perovskite Sm2CoMnO6 are investigated. The electric polarization is observed below the ferromagnetic Curie temperature of 135 K. This electric polarization of Sm2CoMnO6 can be influenced by applying a magnetic field, showing an interesting magnetoelectric effect. The origins of multiferroic properties and magnetoelectric effect are discussed.

Role of strong magnetoelastic interaction in multiferroics materials: Semiconductor CuCrO2 and insulator CaMn7O12

It is shown that strong magnetoelastic interaction causes significant piezoelectric effects in multiferroics. The electric polarization of a single crystal is observed parallel to the axes of magnetic helicoids, either in the basal plane (one example is CuCrO2) or perpendicular to it (in CaMn7O12). The role of topological defects in multiferroic-semiconductor CuCrO2, where counterpropagating domains may exist, is discussed. The nonmonotonic change in polarization with an increase in external pressure in this material is explained phenomenologically, and the possibility of existence of an antiferroelectric state is also discussed. For the CaMn7O12 crystal with giant polarization, it is shown that the helix pitch may remain constant under large variations in temperature. The chirality of helicoids for multiferroics of both types correlates with the polarization orientation.

Caloric and multicaloric effects in oxygen ferroics and multiferroics

The main problems of the current state-of-the-art research into the caloric effects observed in oxygen ferroics, multiferroics, and composites, as well as the influence of different factors (anisotropy, dimensional parameters, direct and indirect interferroic interactions) on these effects, have been considered. Possible ways to increase the caloric efficiency of materials have been analyzed.

Giant multiferroic effects in topological GeTe-Sb2Te3 superlattices

Multiferroics, materials in which both magnetic and electric fields can induce each other, resulting in a magnetoelectric response, have been attracting increasing attention, although the induced magnetic susceptibility and dielectric constant are usually small and have typically been reported for low temperatures. The magnetoelectric response usually depends on d-electrons of transition metals. Here we report that in [(GeTe)2(Sb2Te3)l]m superlattice films (where l and m are integers) with topological phase transition, strong magnetoelectric response may be induced at temperatures above room temperature when the external fields are applied normal to the film surface. By ab initio computer simulations, it is revealed that the multiferroic properties are induced due to the breaking of spatial inversion symmetry when the p-electrons of Ge atoms change their bonding geometry from octahedral to tetrahedral. Finally, we demonstrate the existence in such structures of spin memory, which paves the way for a future hybrid device combining nonvolatile phase-change memory and magnetic spin memory.

Magnetic shape memory effect and highly mobile twin boundaries

The magnetic shape memory effect can be classified as an example of the multiferroic effect combining ferro-elasticity and (ferro)magnetism. After short overview of all known effects the focus is on magnetic field induced structure reorientation (MIR) in the martensite of Ni–Mn–Ga. In this material giant deformations of up to 12% have been observed in moderate magnetic fields. The phenomenology of the effect is first discussed and a model presented. The properties of Ni–Mn–Ga relevant to MIR are then considered. One necessary condition for MIR is a highly mobile twin boundary or interface between two differently oriented martensite variants (ferroelastic domains). In 10M modulated martensite, two types of mobile twin boundary (type I and type II) are observed with complex layered microstructures consisting of a hierarchy of twinning systems. The boundaries strongly differ according to the magnitude and temperature dependence of the twinning stress. Finally, the nature of these boundaries and their different behaviour is reviewed.

Phase Competitions behind the Giant Magnetic Entropy Variation: Gd5Si2Ge2 and Tb5Si2Ge2 Case Studies

Magnetic materials with strong spin-lattice coupling are a powerful set of candidates for multifunctional applications because of their multiferroic, magnetocaloric (MCE), magnetostrictive and magnetoresistive effects. In these materials there is a strong competition between two states (where a state comprises an atomic and an associated magnetic structure) that leads to the occurrence of phase transitions under subtle variations of external parameters, such as temperature, magnetic field and hydrostatic pressure. In this review a general method combining detailed magnetic measurements/analysis and first principles calculations with the purpose of estimating the phase transition temperature is presented with the help of two examples (Gd5Si2Ge2 and Tb5Si2Ge2). It is demonstrated that such method is an important tool for a deeper understanding of the (de)coupled nature of each phase transition in the materials belonging to the R5(Si,Ge)4 family and most possibly can be applied to other systems. The exotic Griffiths-like phase in the framework of the R5(SixGe1-x)4 compounds is reviewed and its generalization as a requisite for strong phase competitions systems that present large magneto-responsive properties is proposed.

Nonlinear magnetoelectric effect in composite multiferroics

The theoretical and experimental studies of the nonlinear magnetoelectric effect in composite multiferroics in the low-frequency spectral region and in the electromechanical resonance region have been performed. It has been shown that such structures demonstrate a nonlinear magnetoelectric effect, which is quadratic in ac magnetic field strength at weak magnetic fields. In the region of the electromechanical resonance, the resonance excitation of an electric field occurs by means of ac magnetic field at a frequency lower than the resonance frequency by a factor of two. In the low-frequency spectral region, there is a difference of amplitude values of two neighboring voltage maxima due to the superposition of signals from the linear and nonlinear effects, and the difference is proportional to the dc magnetic field strength in weak fields. The results of the experimental study of the two-layer permendur-lead zirconate titanate structure are presented.

Thermodynamics of multicaloric effects in multiferroics

We provide a general thermodynamic framework to study multicaloric effects in multiferroic materials. This is applied to the case of a magnetoelectric multiferroic such as BiFeO, which is described by means of a Landau free energy with a biquadratic coupling between polarization and magnetization. We obtain a phase diagram, the isothermal entropy change and the adiabatic temperature change across different continuous and first-order phase transitions as the applied electric and magnetic fields are varied. The multicaloric effects are suitably decomposed into the corresponding electrocaloric and magnetocaloric contributions.

Noise and finite size effects in multiferroics with strong elastic interactions

The size dependence of yield point assisted ferroelastic switching is dominated by the appearance of a minimum size where the domain switching by external strain is swamped by noise which is determined by internal jamming processes. The lower ferroelastic lateral cut-off size was found in computer simulations to be 200 × 202 unit cells for hard materials and 40 × 42 unit cells for soft materials. The corresponding length scales are 16 nm and 4 nm, respectively. These lengths are greater than the minimum length to sustain a twinned sample (∼1 nm). Elastic interactions modify the switching behavior of multiferroics at larger lengths but do not prevent elastic switching above these noise cut-offs.

Full Electric Control of Exchange Bias

We report the creation of a multiferroic field effect device with a BiFeO(3) (BFO) (antiferromagnetic-ferroelectric) gate dielectric and a La(0.7)Sr(0.3)MnO(3) (LSMO) (ferromagnetic) conducting channel that exhibits direct, bipolar electrical control of exchange bias. We show that exchange bias is reversibly switched between two stable states with opposite exchange bias polarities upon ferroelectric poling of the BFO. No field cooling, temperature cycling, or additional applied magnetic or electric field beyond the initial BFO polarization is needed for this bipolar modulation effect. Based on these results and the current understanding of exchange bias, we propose a model to explain the control of exchange bias. In this model the coupled antiferromagnetic-ferroelectric order in BFO along with the modulation of interfacial exchange interactions due to ionic displacement of Fe(3+) in BFO relative to Mn(3+/4+) in LSMO cause bipolar modulation.

Coupled caloric effects in multiferroics

Abstract We propose a conception – coupled caloric effect where the enhanced caloric effects originate from the coupling among magnetic, ferroelectric, and structural degrees of freedom. Specifically, as the magneto-electric case, the magnitude of the coupled caloric effect was evaluated for a ferromagnetic–ferroelectric system using a phenomenological calculation based on Landau phase transition theory. The isothermal entropy change is greatly enhanced by increasing the magneto-electric coupling strength. This work indicates that the caloric effect in a ferromagnetic–ferroelectric coupled system consists of pure magnetic entropy change ( Δ S M ), pure ferroelectric one ( Δ S E ), and coupled one ( Δ S ME ) that plays a significant part. The counterpart of the last one in magneto-structural coupled system was usually neglected. Our study provides a route to energy-efficient refrigeration via realization of coupling among various ferroic orders.

Combining Magnetism and Ferroelectricity towards Multiferroicity

The attempts to combine both the magnetic and ferroelectric properties in one material started in 1960s predominantly by the group of Smolenskii and Schmid [1. Dzyaloshinskii first presented the theory for multiferroicity in Cr2O3, which was soon experimentally confirmed by Astrov [5,. Further work on multiferroics was done by the group of Smolenskii in St. Petersburg (then Leningrad) [7, but the term multiferroic was first used by H. Schmid in 1994 [. These efforts have resulted in many fundamental observations and opened up an entirely new field of study. Schmid [ defined the multiferroics as single phase materials which simultaneously possess two or more primary ferroic properties. The term multiferroic has been expanded to include materials which exhibit any type of long range magnetic ordering, spontaneous electric polarization, and/or ferroelasticity. In the past decade, several hundreds of papers related to multiferroic materials and magnetoelectric effect have been published every year, making this topic one of the hottest areas in condensed matter physics from fundamental science as well as applications viewpoints. This article sheds light on recent progress about the developments of new multiferroics by combining unconventional magnetism and ferroelectricity with an emphasis on Bi based multiferroic materials. Specifically results of Ti doped BiMn2O5and Bi doped Co2MnO4multiferroics are discussed.

Driving magnetic order in a manganite by ultrafast lattice excitation

Optical control of magnetism, of interest for high-speed data processing and storage, has only been demonstrated with near-infrared excitation to date. However, in absorbing materials, such high photon energies can lead to significant dissipation, making switch back times long and miniaturization challenging. In manganites, magnetism is directly coupled to the lattice, as evidenced by the response to external and chemical pressure, or to ferroelectric polarization. Here, femtosecond mid-infrared pulses are used to excite the lattice in La0.5Sr1.5MnO4 and the dynamics of electronic order are measured by femtosecond resonant soft x-ray scattering with an x-ray free electron laser. We observe that magnetic and orbital orders are reduced by excitation of the lattice. This process, which occurs within few picoseconds, is interpreted as relaxation of the complex charge-orbital-spin structure following a displacive exchange quench - a prompt shift in the equilibrium value of the magnetic and orbital order parameters after the lattice has been distorted. A microscopic picture of the underlying unidirectional lattice displacement is proposed, based on nonlinear rectification of the directly-excited vibrational field, as analyzed in the specific lattice symmetry of La0.5Sr1.5MnO4. Control of magnetism through ultrafast lattice excitation has important analogies to the multiferroic effect and may serve as a new paradigm for high-speed optomagnetism.

Multiferroic composite for combined detection of static and alternating magnetic fields

Magneto-electric (ME) effects in bi-layer multiferroics consisting of single crystal hexagonal SrAl xFe 12 − x O 19 ferrites (hexaferrites, where x = 0, 0.8, 1.2) and PbZrTiO 3 (PZT) have been studied. The main objective of the study was to determine the effect of the Al doping concentration on the ME coupling. We experimentally demonstrate that the Al doping improves dramatically the magnetically induced ME voltage. Moreover, our data indicate that the ME response is a linear function of both ac and dc applied magnetic fields. This is in contrast to previously reported multiferroic laminates that show a non-linear magneto-electric induced voltage as a function of the applied dc magnetic field. The multiferroic structures reported in this work have therefore enhanced functionality because they can linearly operate as a dual ac/dc magnetic field sensors.