Paramagnetic Insulator Research Articles

XANES/EXAFS study of the Lu and Y incorporation in the single crystal Tb3Sc2Al3O12 Faraday rotator

Tb3Sc2Al3O12 (TSAG) is a paramagnetic insulator which, in spite of its congruent nature and excellent magneto-optical properties as Faraday rotators for optical isolators (OIs), cannot be industrially produced. The reason is that its lattice structure is so stressed that single crystals easily crack upon cooling after growth or during the cutting process. By the incorporation of a small amount of Lu, it has been demonstrated that the stress in the structure can be effectively released, and, therefore, the crystal cracking can be avoided. This has enabled the substitution of standard Tb3Ga5O12 (TGG), achieving better high-power performance and compacter OIs. In this study, the charge state and the lattice site location of Lu as well as Y dopants in TSAG are investigated by X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure and Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure Analysis. Measurements on single crystal and powdered samples indicate that both dopants are incorporated in the 3+ charge state and substitute predominantly in the dodecahedral Tb-site (>87.5%), while a minor fraction is found in the octahedral Sc-site.

Effect of oxygen non-stoichiometry on magnetic and electrical transport properties of La0.67Sr0.33MnO3

The effect of oxygen deficiency and oxygen excess on the magnetic and electrical transport properties of La0.67Sr0.33MnO3 has been investigated. The thermal and isothermal magnetization measurement results show that the Curie temperature and saturation magnetization of oxygen deficient sample (defined as A) are higher than those oxygen excess sample (defined as B). The electrical resistivity of A is lower than that of B in studied temperature range. The magnetoresistance (MR) of B is larger than that of A in the temperature range from 280 to 360 K, which agrees with the magnetic field needed full spin polarization at room temperature. The colossal MR (CMR) around transition temperature from ferromagnetic metal to paramagnetic insulator (TMI) for A is larger than that for B, which arises from assistance of stronger lattice deformation for A.

Survival of the Quantum Anomalous Hall Effect in Orbital Magnetic Fields as a Consequence of the Parity Anomaly.

Recent experimental progress in condensed matter physics enables the observation of signatures of the parity anomaly in two-dimensional Dirac-like materials. Using effective field theories and analyzing band structures in external out-of-plane magnetic fields (orbital fields), we show that topological properties of quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) insulators are related to the parity anomaly. We demonstrate that the QAH phase survives in orbital fields, violates the Onsager relation, and can be therefore distinguished from a quantum Hall (QH) phase. As a fingerprint of the QAH phase in increasing orbital fields, we predict a transition from a quantized Hall plateau with σ_{xy}=-e^{2}/h to a not perfectly quantized plateau, caused by scattering processes between counterpropagating QH and QAH edge states. This transition can be especially important in paramagnetic QAH insulators, such as (Hg,Mn)Te/CdTe quantum wells, in which exchange interaction and orbital fields compete.

Hubbard model on an anisotropic checkerboard lattice at finite temperatures: Magnetic and metal–insulator transitions

We study magnetic and Mott transitions of the Hubbard model on the geometrically frustrated anisotropic checkerboard lattice at half filling using cellular dynamical mean-field theory. Phase diagrams over a wide area of the parameter space are obtained by varying the interparticle interaction strength, geometric frustration strength, and temperature. Our results show that frustration and thermal fluctuations play a competing role against the interactions and in general favor a metallic phase without antiferromagnetic order. Due to their interplay, the system exhibits competition between antiferromagnetic insulator, antiferromagnetic metal, paramagnetic insulator, and paramagnetic metal phases in the intermediate-interaction regime. In the strong-interaction limit, which reduces to the Heisenberg model, our result is consistent with previous studies.

Study of Magnetoresistance Effect and Magnetic Properties of La<sub>0.67</sub>Sr<sub>0.33</sub>Mn<sub>1-<i>x</i></sub>Ni<i><sub>x</sub></i>O<sub>3</sub> (x = 0 and 0.2) Material Prepared by Sol-Gel Method

Mixed valence manganite materials have been studied due to their interesting physical properties such as their magnetoresistance (MR) effect. The change of Mn3+/Mn4+ ratio affects the possible bonds between anion and cation and their spin structure that may occur in the samples. The aim of this research is to study the change of magnetoresistance effect and magnetic properties of La0.67Sr0.33MnO3 (LSMO) by doping the Mn site with Ni ion. La0.67Sr0.33Mn1-xNixO3 samples were synthesized by using sol-gel method and characterized by using X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) to confirm whether Ni has been doped successfully to the parental compound or not. XRD results showed that the samples have a single phase and Ni peak has been detected in the EDX result of Ni-doped LSMO. Resistivity and magnetic measurement showed that LSMO material has ferromagnetic metallic behavior, while x = 0.20 Ni-doped LSMO sample showed paramagnetic insulator behavior. The absolute value of the MR for un-doped sample is higher than the doped sample when the low field is applied, while under the influence of the high magnetic field, it become smaller than the doped sample.

In Quest of a Ferromagnetic Insulator: Structure-Controlled Magnetism in Mg–Ti–O Thin Films

Ferromagnetic insulator thin films can convey information by spin waves, avoiding charge displacement and Eddy current losses. The sparsity of high-temperature insulating ferromagnetic materials hinders the development of spin-wave-based devices. Stoichiometric magnesium titanate, MgTiO3, has an electronic-energy-band structure in which all bands are either full or empty, being a paramagnetic insulator. The MgTiO3 ilmenite consists of ordered octahedra and a cation network in which one-third of the octahedra are vacant, one-third host magnesium, and one-third titanium. By giving up these characteristics, a rich variety of different magnetic structures can be formed. Our experiments and electronic-energy-band-structure computations show that the magnetic and electric properties of Mg–Ti–O films can drastically be changed and controlled by Mg- and Ti-cation arrangement and abundancy in the octahedra. Insulating titanium- and semiconducting magnesium-rich films exhibited reversible magnetization up to elevated temperatures. The presence and origin of the insulating phase with reversible magnetization, assigned to ferromagnetic ordering, is not apparent. The expectation, based on the well-established rules set by Goodenough and Kanamori, is paramagnetic or antiferromagnetic ordering. We show that ferro- and paramagnetic phases, possessing the same stoichiometry, can be obtained by merely rearranging the cations, thus allowing defect-free interfaces in multilayer structures.

Phase diagram of the half-filled ionic Hubbard model in the limit of strong correlations

We investigate the ionic Hubbard model (IHM) at half-filling in the limit of strong correlations and large ionic potential. The low energy effective Hamiltonian in this limit, obtained by a similarity transformation, is a modified $t-J$ model with effective second neighbour hopping terms. We explore the possibilities of d-wave pairing and extended s-wave pairing superconducting (SC) phases on a two dimensional square lattice at zero temperature within a Gutzwiller projected renormalized mean field theory. In the sector of solutions that forbid spin ordering, the system shows a finite non-zero d-wave as well as extended s-wave pairing amplitude for $\Delta \sim U \gg t$. The width of the superconducting phase in $U-\Delta$ regime shrinks with increase in $U$ and $\Delta$, though the extended s-wave pairing phase is higher in energy than the d-wave pairing superconducting phase. But in a spin resolved renormalized mean field calculation, which allows for an antiferromagnetic (AF) order along with the d-wave or extended s-wave pairing, the SC phase is no longer viable and the system shows a direct transition from an AF ordered phase to a paramagnetic band insulator. Except for a thin sliver of a half-metallic AF phase close to the AF transition point, most of the AF ordered phase is a Mott insulator. We benchmarked the AF Mott insulator to band insulator transition within the Gutzwiller projected renormalized mean field theory against the dynamical mean field theory (DMFT) solved using continuous time quantum Monte-Carlo (CTQMC). Our work suggests that the ground state phase diagram of the IHM at half-filling in the limit of extreme correlations does not have any SC phase. The SC phase seen in the paramagnetic sector is a metastable phase, being higher in energy than the AF Mott insulator phase.

Mott transition in ruby lattice Hubbard model**Project supported by Inner Mongolia Natural Science Foundation, China (Grant No. 06021601).

Mott transition in a ruby lattice with fermions described by the Hubbard model including on-site repulsive interaction is investigated by combining the cellular dynamical mean-field theory and the continuous-time quantum Monte Carlo algorithm. The effect of temperature and on-site repulsive interaction on the metallic–insulating phase transition in ruby lattice with fermions is discussed based on the density of states and double occupancy. In addition, the magnetic property of each phase is discussed by defining certain magnetic order parameters. Our results show that the antiferromagnetic metal is found at the low temperature and weak interaction region and the antiferromagnetic insulating phase is found at the low temperature and strong interaction region. The paramagnetic metal appears in whole on-site repulsive interaction region when the temperature is higher than a certain value and the paramagnetic insulator appears at the middle scale of temperature and on-site repulsive interaction.

A "non-dynamical" way of describing room-temperature paramagnetic manganese oxide.

We present a new approach based on static density functional theory (DFT) to describe paramagnetic manganese oxides, representative paramagnetic Mott insulators. We appended spin noncollinearity and a canonical ensemble to the magnetic sampling method (MSM), which is one of the supercell approaches based on the disordered local moment model. The combination of the noncollinear MSM (NCMSM) with DFT+U represents a highly favorable computational method called NCMSM+U to accurately determine the paramagnetic properties of MnO with moderate numerical cost. The effects of electron correlations and spin noncollinearity on the properties of MnO were also investigated. We found that the spin noncollinearity plays an important role in determining the detailed electronic profile and precise energetics of paramagnetic MnO. Our results illustrate that the NCMSM+U approach may be used for insulating materials as an alternative to the ab initio framework of dynamic mean field theory based on DFT in the simulation of the room-temperature paramagnetic properties.

Magnetic and topological transitions in three-dimensional topological Kondo insulator☆☆Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant Nos 11764010, 11504061, 11564008, 11704084, and 11704166, the Natural Science Foundation of Guangxi Province under Grant Nos 2017GXNSFAA198169 and 2017GXNSFBA198115, and the SPC-Lab Research Fund under Grant No XKFZ201605.

Using an extended slave-boson method, we draw a global phase diagram summarizing both magnetic phases and paramagnetic (PM) topological insulators (TIs) in a three-dimensional topological Kondo insulator (TKI). By including electron hopping (EH) up to the third neighbors, we identify four strong TI (STI) phases and two weak TI (WTI) phases. Then, the PM phase diagrams characterizing topological transitions between these TIs are depicted as functions of EH, f-electron energy level, and hybridization constant. We also find an insulator–metal transition from an STI phase that has surface Fermi rings and spin textures in qualitative agreement with the TKI candidate SmB6. In the weak hybridization regime, antiferromagnetic (AF) order naturally arises in the phase diagrams. Depending on how the magnetic boundary crosses the PM topological transition lines, AF phases are classified into the AF topological insulator (AFTI) and the non-topological AF insulator, according to their indices. In two small regions of parameter space, two distinct topological transition processes between AF phases occur, leading to two types of AFTIs showing distinguishable surface dispersions around their Dirac points.

In My Element: Oxygen

The In My Element series celebrates the personal accounts from Chemistry – A European Journal Editorial Board members for the 2019 International Year of the Periodic Table. In this contribution, C. N. R. Rao gives his story on oxygen. My love for oxygen can be traced to the very beginning of my research career. This is not because oxygen was discovered by the Father of Chemistry, Lavoisier, and it is essential for life as O2 and as H2O, but because it forms a variety of metal oxides with interesting structures and a wide range of properties1 (Table 1). Oxygen can exist as O21−, O22− and O2− in solids and as O1− on certain surfaces. Oxygen stoichiometry is an important aspect of oxides, oxygen deficiency often giving rise to new types of ordered structures (TinO2n−1 Magneli phases, Pr2O2n−2). Metallic: ReO3, NbO, LaNiO3 Dielectric: BaTiO3 Antiferromagnetic: NiO, LaCrO3 Ferromagnetic: CrO2, La0.5Sr0.5CoO3, SrRuO3 Ferroelectric: BaTiO3, KNbO3 Ferroelastic: Gd2(MoO4)3 Superconducting: BaPb0.75Bi0.25O3, YBa2Cu3O7 Insulator-Metal Transition: V2O3, VO2, La1−xSrxCoO3 Colossal Magnetoresistance (CMR): La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 Multiferroic: BiFeO3, YMnO3, TbMnO3 I have worked on metal oxides for a long time,2 and my very first research paper in materials chemistry in the late 1950′s was on the transformation of the anatase form of TiO2 to the rutile form. I also studied the so-called nonstoichiometric oxides of rare earths of the type Pr6O11, Pr7O12 and Tb4O7. Soon I realized how perovskite oxides (ABO3) exhibit a variety of phenomena and properties such as ferroelectricity and magnetism, and how the pervoskite motif is present in several families of oxides. I have been working on perovskite oxides including two-dimensional oxides for many years. I worked on La2CuO4, as early as 1971, mother of cuprate superconductors. My group was one of the first to characterize YBa2Cu3O7, the first liquid nitrogen superconductor, which also has the perovskite motif. The number of cuprate families exhibiting high temperature superconductivity is impressive.3 The discovery of colossal magnetoresistance in rare earth manganites of the type La1−xCaxMnO3 which show both orbital and charge-ordering led to a variety of investigations and to the observation of the phenomenon of electronic phase separation.4 We observed major effects of phase separation in Nd0.5Sr0.5MnO3, which is ferromagnetic at ordinary temperatures, and occurs in three phases (FM+2AFMs) at liquid helium temperatures. I started working on multiferroics in the 1990’s, the well-known examples being BiFeO3 and YMnO3. Cation substitution in oxides is commonly carried out to cause changes in structures and properties. An impressive example is that of Sr substituted LaCoO3 where a paramagnetic insulator becomes a ferromagnetic metal on substitution of Sr in place of La. Cation substitution generally affects the unoccupied states and anion substitution, specially aliovalent anions on the other hand, cause drastic changes in the valence bands. In recent months, I have been working on oxide analogues wherein oxygen is substituted by nitrogen and fluorine, resulting is novel electronic and catalytic properties.5 For example, Zn2NF and TiNF are isoelectronic with ZnO and TiO2 respectively, but exhibit entirely different electronic structures and properties. Position Linus Pauling Research Professor E-mail cnrrao@jncasr.ac.in Homepage http://www.jncasr.ac.in/cnrrao Education B.Sc (Mysore, 1951), M.Sc (Banaras, 1953) Ph.D (1957, Prof R.L. Livingston, Purdue, “Molecular structure investigations by gas phase electron diffraction)” D.Sc (1960) Mysore “Studies of Structural Chemistry and Nitrogen Chemistry” Post-doctoral fellowship (1958-1959; Berkeley, Prof K.S. Pitzer) Awards Dan David Prize for Science in the Future Dimension (2005) Ernesto Illy Trieste Science Prize (2011) for materials research The Royal Medal (The Queens Medal) of the Royal Society, London, U.K (2009) The August-Wilhelm-von-Hoffmann Medal for outstanding contributions to chemistry by the German Chemical Society (2010) Von Hippel Award for materials research by Materials Research Society, US (2017) Chevalier de la Légion D′Honneur by the President of the French Republic (2005) Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star by the Emperor of Japan (2015) Bharat Ratna (Jewel of India), Highest Civilian Award of India (2014) Research interests Chemistry of Materials, in particular, oxide materials, 2D materials, solar water-splitting Hobbies and interests Listening to classical music and cooking

Superconducting Heterostructures Interlayered with a Material with Strong Spin–Orbit Interaction

Abstract—Superconducting heterostructures interlayered with a material with strong spin–orbit interaction are studied. As materials with strong spin–orbit interaction, we choose strontium iridates featuring the Ruddlesden–Popper structure (Srn + 1IrnO3n + 1; n = 1, 2, ∞): paramagnetic metal SrIrO3 and magnetic insulator Sr2IrO4. Using laser ablation, epitaxial films of these materials are obtained, as well as heterostructures based on epitaxial films of cuprate superconducting YBa2Cu3Ox. For electrical measurements, mesa-structures of micrometer sizes with top electrodes made of Au/Nb bilayer are fabricated.

Gate-controlled magnetoresistance of a paramagnetic-insulator|platinum interface

We report an electric field-induced in-plane magnetoresistance of an atomically flat paramagnetic insulator|platinum (Pt) interface at low temperatures with an ionic liquid gate. Transport experiments as a function of applied magnetic field strength and direction obey the spin Hall magnetoresistance phenomenology with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. Our results establish the utility of ionic gating as an alternative method to control spintronic devices without using ferromagnets.

Finite-temperature phase diagram of (111) nickelate bilayers

We report a density functional theory plus dynamical mean field theory (DFT+DMFT) study of an oxide heterostructure of LaNiO$_3$ (LNO) bilayers in [111] direction interleaved with four atomic monolayers of LaAlO$_3$. DFT+$U$ optimizations yield two stable solutions: a uniform structure with equivalent NiO$_6$ octahedra, as well as a bond-disproportionated (BD) structure featuring a breathing distortion. For both structures, we construct the low-energy models describing the Ni $e_g$ states by means of Wannier projections supplemented by the Kanamori interaction, and solve them by DMFT. Using the continuous-time quantum Monte Carlo algorithm in the hybridization expansion, we study the temperature range between 145 and 450 K. For the uniform and the BD structure, we find similar phase diagrams that comprise four phases: a ferromagnetic metal (FM), a paramagnetic metal (PM), an antiferro-orbitally-ordered insulator (AOI), as well as a paramagnetic insulator (PI). By calculating momentum-resolved spectral functions on a torus and a cylinder, we demonstrate that the FM phase is not a Dirac metal, while both insulating phases are topologically trivial. By a comparison with available experimental data and model DMFT studies for the two-orbital Hubbard model, we suggest that LNO bilayers are in the AOI phase at room temperature.

Mixed-valence insulators with neutral Fermi surfaces

Samarium hexaboride is a classic three-dimensional mixed valence system with a high-temperature metallic phase that evolves into a paramagnetic charge insulator below 40 K. A number of recent experiments have suggested the possibility that the low-temperature insulating bulk hosts electrically neutral gapless fermionic excitations. Here we show that a possible ground state of strongly correlated mixed valence insulators—a composite exciton Fermi liquid—hosts a three dimensional Fermi surface of a neutral fermion, that we name the “composite exciton.” We describe the mechanism responsible for the formation of such excitons, discuss the phenomenology of the composite exciton Fermi liquids and make comparison to experiments in SmB6.

Effect of nanostructure on thermoelectric properties of La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 in 300–600 K temperature range

In oxide materials, nanostructuring effect has been found a very promising approach for the enhancement of figure-of-merit, ZT. In the present work, we have synthesized La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 (LSMO) compound using sol-gel method and samples of crystallite size of ∼20, ∼41, and ∼49 nm were obtained by giving different heat treatment. Seebeck coefficient (α), electrical resistivity (ρ), and thermal conductivity (κ) measurements were carried out in 300–600 K temperature range. The systematic change in the values of α from ∼−19 μV/K to ∼−24 μV/K and drastic reduction in the values of κ from ∼0.88 W/mK to ∼0.23 W/mK are observed as crystallite size is reduced from 49 nm to 20 nm at ∼600 K. Also, fall in the values of ρ in the paramagnetic (PM) insulator phase (400–600 K) are effectively responsible for the increasing trend in the values of ZT at high temperature. For the crystallite size of 41 nm, the value of ZT at 600 K was found to be ∼0.017.

Consequences of phase separation on magnetotransport in dc magnetron sputtered Sm0.50Sr0.50MnO3 thin films on LSAT substrate

Single crystalline thin films of Sm0.50Sr0.50MnO3 (SSMO) (thickness ∼200 nm) were prepared on LSAT (100) single crystal substrates by dc magnetron sputtering. The X-ray diffraction θ‒2θ and ω-2θ scan reveals that these films (i) have very good crystallinity, (ii) are oriented along out-of-plane c-direction, and (iii) are under small tensile strain. Temperature and magnetic field dependent electrical transport of these films shows (i) sharp paramagnetic insulator (PMI) to ferromagnetic metal (FMM) transition, (ii) large enhancement in TIM when subjected to magnetic field, (iii) hysteretic variation in resistivity with magnetic field, and (iv) huge occurrence of magnetoresistance near PMI-FMM transition. The magnetic state in the FMM (T < TC) regime resembles cluster glass, which is formed by the presence of charge ordered-antiferromagnetic clusters in the ferromagnetic matrix. The results shown in the present study could be regarded as the consequence of strong nature of phase separation in these films due to competing FMM and AFM-COI phases in these films which is known to be the generic feature of low bandwidth manganites.

Thermal Emittance of $$\hbox {La}_{0.7}\hbox {Ca}_{0.3-x}\hbox {K}_x\hbox {MnO}_3$$ La 0.7 Ca 0.3 - x K x MnO 3 Coatings on Aluminum Substrate

A novel thermal control coating was presented based on the thermochromism of manganite. The pigment of K-doped manganite nanoparticles was dispersed into polymer matrix to prepare the coating with curing below 200 $$^{\circ }$$ C. The nanoparticles size mainly distributes around 100–200 nm, and it shows a comparable stoichiometric ratio. The phase transition of the nanoparticles was observed from ferromagnetic metallic to paramagnetic insulator state. With increasing K doping level, the phase transition temperature increases, achieving controllable adjustment. Coating surface with and without pore defect was obtained by different polymer matrix. A sharp emittance variation was observed with increasing temperature in K-doped coating. The variation magnitude of emittance is up to 0.46, which is attractive to space thermal control. It is suggested that the pigment content of 50 wt% is sufficient to realize a large emittance variation.

Generation of spin currents from one-dimensional quantum spin liquid

Spin-Seebeck effects (SSEs) in a one-dimensional quantum spin liquid (QSL) system have been investigated in a Sr2CuO3/Pt hybrid structure. Sr2CuO3 contains one-dimensional spin-12 chains in which typical spinons in QSL have been confirmed. Heat-induced voltage measured in a clean Pt/Sr2CuO3 exhibits anomalous sign reversal with decreasing temperature, the negative component of which can be attributed to the spinon-induced SSE. However, the SSE was found to be critically decreased upon the exposure of Sr2CuO3 to air, which can be associated with the chemical degradation of the interface of Sr2CuO3. Despite the drastic change in the SSE signals, properties of the one-dimensional QSL are little changed in the spin susceptibility as well as the thermal conductivity of Sr2CuO3. The SSE signal is also sensitive to the purity of Sr2CuO3; it is suppressed with a decrease in the purity of the primary compounds of the Sr2CuO3. The result indicates that the spinon-induced SSE in Sr2CuO3 is sensitive to the bulk condition due to the one-dimensional atomic channel for spin transport in Sr2CuO3. In a carefully prepared Sr2CuO3/Pt sample, we found that the spinon-induced SSE signal is tolerant to magnetic fields; it increases linearly with the field even up to 9 T. In contrast, SSEs are suppressed under such a high field in ferrimagnetic insulators Y3Fe5O12 or paramagnetic insulators Gd3Ga5O12, which is caused by the Zeeman gap in the spin-wave or paramagnetic spin excitations. The robustness of the spinon-induced SSE is consistent with the Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid theories.

Improvement of room-temperature TCR and MR in polycrystalline La0.67(Ca0.27Sr0.06)MnO3 ceramics by Ag2O doping

Polycrystalline La0.67(Ca0.27Sr0.06)MnO3:mol%Agx (LCSMO:Agx, x = 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5) ceramics were prepared by conventional sol-gel method. Effects of Ag-doping (x) on structures, surface morphologies, electrical and magnetic transport properties of the as-prepared LCSMO:Agx samples were evaluated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) showed that all samples crystallized in orthorhombic structures with Pnma space group. As x content increased, main diffraction peak (121) shifted downwards lower angles, giving rise to A site ions (Ca2+ or Sr2+) substitution by Ag+. This, in turn, caused slight expansion of the lattice and improved Mn4+ ion concentration. Meanwhile, grain size gradually increased and grain boundaries (GBs) reduced, the resistivity decreased and metal-insulator transition temperature (TMI) almost kept constant at room temperature. On the other hand, the magnetoresistance (MR) and temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) increased during first stages and then decreased as x further rose. An optimum doping molar ratio of x = 0.2 was obtained, with room temperature MR and TCR reaching up to 44.5% and 22.5% K−1, respectively. Curve fitting results indicated that in low temperature ferromagnetic metallic (FM) region, conductive behavior of LCSMO:Agx was mainly related to electron-electron, electron-phonon, and electron-magnon scattering. In high temperature paramagnetic insulating (PI) region, data followed the small-polaron-hopping model. Conductive behavior in the entire temperature region was fitted with phenomenological equation under percolation approach, and found to depend on segregation of FM and PI phases. These findings suggest promising applications of LCSMO:Agx materials in photoelectric (uncooled bolometer or infrared detectors) or magnetic devices (uncooled magnetic sensors) at room temperature.