Investigation of the Phase Transitions and Magneto-Electric Response in the 0.9(PbFe0.5Nb0.5)O3-0.1Co0.6Zn0.4Fe1.7Mn0.3O4 Particulate Composite

Multiferroic composites with enhanced magneto-electric coefficient are suitable candidates for various multifunctional devices. Here, we chose a particulate composite, which is the combination of multiferroic (PbFe0.5Nb0.5O3, PFN) as matrix and magnetostrictive (Co0.6Zn0.4Fe1.7Mn0.3O4, CZFMO) material as the dispersive phase. The X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the formation of the composite having both perovskite PFN and magnetostrictive CZFMO phases. The scanning electron micrograph (SEM) showed dispersion of the CZFMO phase in the matrix of the PFN phase. The temperature-dependent magnetization curves suggested the transition arising due to PFN and CZFMO phase. The temperature-dependent dielectric study revealed a second-order ferroelectric to the paraelectric phase transition of the PFN phase in the composite with a small change in the transition temperature as compared to pure PFN. The magnetocapacitance (MC%) and magnetoimpedance (MI%) values (obtained from the magneto-dielectric study at room temperature (RT)) at 10 kHz were found to be 0.18% and 0.17% respectively. The intrinsic magneto-electric coupling value for this composite was calculated to be 0.14 mVcm−1Oe−1, which is comparable to other typical multiferroic composites in bulk form. The composite PFN-CZFMO exhibited a converse magneto-electric effect with a change in remanent magnetization value of −58.34% after electrical poling of the material. The obtained outcomes from the present study may be utilized in the understanding and development of new technologies of this composite for spintronics applications.

Effect of the interplay between layering sequence permutations and thickness on the magnetic features of Fe/Ni/Gd hetero-films

The effect of the interplay between layering sequence permutations and film thickness on the temperature-dependent magnetization and spin structure of Fe/Ni/Gd hetero-films (sizes: 10 nm × 10 nm × d nm and 20 nm × 20 nm × d nm, where d is the film thickness and with all possible layer sequence permutations) is investigated in the framework of an atomistic spin dynamics formalism.