Investigating the Size and Microstrain Influence in the Magnetic Order/Disorder State of GdCu2 Nanoparticles

A series of GdCu 22 nanoparticles with controlled sizes ranging from 7 nm to 40 nm has been produced via high-energy inert-gas ball milling. Rietveld refinements on the X-ray diffraction measurements ensure that the bulk crystalline ImmaImma structure is retained within the nanoparticles, thanks to...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Martín Jefremovas, Elizabeth|||0000-0001-8501-058X, Alonso Masa, Javier|||0000-0003-0045-5390, Fuente Rodríguez, María de la, Rodríguez Fernández, Jesús|||0000-0002-4046-2969, Espeso Martínez, José Ignacio|||0000-0002-4018-7186, Rojas Pupo, Daniel|||0000-0002-5620-8586, García Prieto, Ana, Fernández-Gubieda Ruiz, María Luisa, Fernández Barquín, Luis|||0000-0003-4722-3722
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2020
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Cantabria (UC)
Repositorio:UCrea Repositorio Abierto de la Universidad de Cantabria
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:repositorio.unican.es:10902/20562
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10902/20562
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Magnetic nanoparticles
Rare earth intermetallics
Magnetic coupling
X-ray diffraction
Spin Glass
Descripción
Sumario:A series of GdCu 22 nanoparticles with controlled sizes ranging from 7 nm to 40 nm has been produced via high-energy inert-gas ball milling. Rietveld refinements on the X-ray diffraction measurements ensure that the bulk crystalline ImmaImma structure is retained within the nanoparticles, thanks to the employed low milling times ranging from t = 0.5 to t = 5 h. The analysis of the magnetic measurements shows a crossover from Superantiferromagnetism (SAF) to a Super Spin Glass state as the size decreases at NP size of ?D???D?? 18 nm. The microstrain contribution, which is always kept below 1%, together with the increasing surface-to-core ratio of the magnetic moments, trigger the magnetic disorder. Additionally, an extra contribution to the magnetic disorder is revealed within the SAF state, as the oscillating RKKY indirect exchange achieves to couple with the aforementioned contribution that emerges from the size reduction. The combination of both sources of disorder leads to a maximised frustration for ?D???D?? 25 nm sized NPs.