Existence of inter coupled structural, electronic and magnetic states in Sm$ _{2} $NiMnO$ _{6} $ double perovskite

Abstract

Coupling between different interactions allows to control physical aspects in multifunctional materials by perturbing any of the degrees of freedom. Here, we aim to probe the correlation among structural, electronic and magnetic observables of Sm 2 NiMnO 6 ferromagnetic insulator double perovskite. Our employed methodology includes thermal evolution of synchrotron X-ray diffraction, near edge and extended edge hard X-ray absorption spectroscopy and bulk magnetometry. The magnetic ordering in SNMO adopts two transitions, at T C =159.6K due to ferromagnetic arrangement of Ni-Mn sublattice and at T d =34.1K because of anti-parallel alignment of polarized Sm paramagnetic moments with respect to Ni-Mn network. The global as well as local crystal structure of SNMO undergoes isostructural transitions across T C and T d , observed by means of temperature dependent variation in Ni/Mn-O, Ni-Mn bonding characters and super exchange angle in Ni-O-Mn linkage. Hybridization between Ni, Mn 3d, O 2p electronic states is also modified in the vicinity of magnetic transition. On the other hand, the signature of Ni/Mn anti-site disorders are evidenced from local structure and magnetization analysis. The change in crystal environments governs the magnetic response by imposing alteration in metal -ligand orbital overlap. Utilizing these complimentary probes we have found that structural, electronic and magnetic states are inter-coupled in SNMO which makes it a potential platform for technological usage.