Abstract
Nanocrystalline spinel has been synthesized with various grain sizes by high-energy ball milling. From the high-field magnetization studies and extended x-ray-absorption fine-structure, and Mössbauer measurements in an external magnetic field of 5 T applied parallel to the direction of gamma rays, we could observe that ions occupy tetrahedral sites on grain-size reduction due to milling. The spins have a canted structure and the canting angle increases with grain-size reduction. It is possible that the core spins are also canted because of the magnetocrystalline anisotropy introduced by the occupancy of the ions in the tetrahedral sites.
- Received 9 October 2000
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.63.184108
©2001 American Physical Society