Grain boundary effects in bulk colossal magneto resistive (CMR) manganites and manganite/insulator composites: electrical and magnetic properties

peer reviewedIn the first part of this paper, we discuss the effects of grain boundaries on the properties of bulk colossal magnetoresistive (CMR) manganites We compare the electrical resistivity and AC magnetic susceptibility of perovskite La-Ca-Mn-O samples with the same nominal stoichiometry but differing in their microstructure (i) a single grain sample, (ii) a sample containing two grains and (iii) a polycrystalline sample Emphasis is placed on information that can be deduced from the measurements in each case In the second part of the paper, we report the data measured on composite samples containing a CMR phase (La-Ca-Mn-O) and an insulating phase (Mn3O4) The results are discussed in the framework of percolation theory We show how the grain boundaries affect the electrical properties of these materials, and we highlight the crucial role of geometric (demagnetization) effects on the resistance vs magnetic field measurement