Competing exchange interactions on the verge of a metal-insulator transition in the two-dimensional spiral magnet Sr3Fe2 O7

J. H. Kim, Anil Jain, M. Reehuis, G. Khaliullin, D. C. Peets, C. Ulrich, J. T. Park, E. Faulhaber, A. Hoser, H. C. Walker, D. T. Adroja, A. C. Walters, D. S. Inosov, A. Maljuk, B. Keimer

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39 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

We report a neutron scattering study of the magnetic order and dynamics of the bilayer perovskite Sr3Fe2O7, which exhibits a temperature-driven metal-insulator transition at 340 K. We show that the Fe4+ moments adopt incommensurate spiral order below TN=115K and provide a comprehensive description of the corresponding spin-wave excitations. The observed magnetic order and excitation spectra can be well understood in terms of an effective spin Hamiltonian with interactions ranging up to third-nearest-neighbor pairs. The results indicate that the helical magnetism in Sr3Fe2O7 results from competition between ferromagnetic double-exchange and antiferromagnetic superexchange interactions whose strengths become comparable near the metal-insulator transition. They thus confirm a decades-old theoretical prediction and provide a firm experimental basis for models of magnetic correlations in strongly correlated metals.

Original languageEnglish
Article number147206
JournalPhysical Review Letters
Volume113
Issue number14
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 3 Oct 2014

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Physics and Astronomy

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