Structural, magnetic, and electron transport properties of Mn\u3csub\u3e3-x\u3c/sub\u3ePt\u3csub\u3ex\u3c/sub\u3eSn (x = 0, 0.5, 1) nanomaterials

The structural, magnetic, and electron-transport properties of Mn3-xPtxSn (x=0, 0.5, 1) nanomaterials prepared by arc-melting, melt-spinning, and annealing were investigated. It was found that the hexagonal structure is the most stable structure for Mn3Sn and the samples show an antiferromagnetic spin order at room temperature. The Pt-containing samples are mainly tetragonal but contain a small amount of other impurity phases, including hexagonal Mn3Sn and Mn2Sn. At room temperature, the Pt-containing samples show ferri- or ferromagnetic spin order with a Curie temperature of about 370 K. The measured high-field magnetization and anisotropy constant for Mn2PtSn are 405 emu/cm3 and 2.6 Mergs/cm3, respectively. The samples are all highly conducting with metallic electron transport and show a substantial negative magnetoresistance