Enhancing Magnetic Functionality with Scandium: Breaking Stereotypes in the Design of Rare Earth Materials
Replacement of strongly magnetic gadolinium with weakly magnetic scandium unexpectedly enhances ferromagnetic interactions in (Gd 1–x Sc x ) 5 Ge 4 . Based upon this counterintuitive experimental finding we demonstrate the unique role 3d 1 electrons of scandium atoms play in mediating magnetic interactions between the gadolinium atoms from the neighboring layers in the Sm 5 Ge 4 -type crystal lattice. Scandium substitutions at and below 20% rapidly increase the Curie temperature, TC, of the Gd 5 Ge 4 parent, eliminate both the kinetic arrest and hysteresis, and drastically improve reversibility of the first-order magnetostructural transformation at T C . In agreement with first-principles predictions, higher than 20% Sc leads to the formation of a closely related Pu 5 Rh 4 -type structure where the first-order magnetostructural transformation is replaced by a conventional second-order ferromagnetic ordering that remains accompanied by a continuous rearrangement of the crystal lattice. In conclusion, comparison of two materials with similar structures and compositions shows that significantly stronger magnetocaloric effect occurs in the first-order material, which also shows very small hysteresis. Furthermore, we demonstrate that a behavior of a specific interatomic distance can predict anomalous physical properties in a series of alloys where compositional dependence of lattice parameters suggests a rather trivial solid solubility and uninteresting magnetism.