Magnetoelectric effect in samarium molybdate

This paper reports on the nonlinear magnetoelectric effect (MEE) in the orthorhombic ferroelectric ferroelastic beta' phase of samarium molybdate Sm-2(MoO4)(3) observed in magnetic fields up to 20 T and temperatures from 4.4 to 0.43 K. The magnetic-field-induced electric polarization in Sm-2(MoO4)(3) is an order of magnitude larger than that in isomorphic Gd- 2(MoO4)(3). This provides support for the magnetostriction mechanism proposed by us for the MEE in rare-earth molybdates. The polarization in Sm-2(MoO4)(3) was found to fall off with time. The relaxation time constant tau increases with decreasing temperature from tau = 10(2) s at T = 4.4 K to tau approximate to 10(3) s at T = 0.43 K. (C) 2002 MAIK "Nauka/ Interperiodica"