Evidence of Spin Reorientation by Mössbauer Analysis

We report the crystallographic and magnetic properties of $Ni_{0.3}Fe_{0.7}Ga_2S_4$ by means of X-ray diffractometer (XRD), a superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometer, and a M$\ddot{o}$ssbauer spectroscopy. In particular, $Ni_{0.3}Fe_{0.7}Ga_2S_4$ was studied by M$\ddot{o}$ssbauer analysis for evidence of spin reorientation. The chalcogenide material $Ni_{0.3}Fe_{0.7}Ga_2S_4$ was fabricated by a direct reaction method. XRD analysis confirmed that $Ni_{0.3}Fe_{0.7}Ga_2S_4$ has a 2-dimension (2-D) triangular lattice structure, with space group P-3m1. The M$\ddot{o}$ssbauer spectra of $Ni_{0.3}Fe_{0.7}Ga_2S_4$ at spectra at various temperatures from 4.2 to 300 K showed that the spectrum at 4.2 K has a severely distorted 8-line shape, as spin liquid. Electric quadrupole splitting, $E_Q$ has anomalous two-points of temperature dependence of $E_Q$ curve as freezing temperature, $T_f=11K$, and N$\acute{e}$el temperature, $T_N=26K$. This suggests that there appears to be a slowly-fluctuating "spin gel" state between $T_f$ and $T_N$, caused by non-paramagnetic spin state below $T_N$. This comes from charge re-distribution due to spin-orientation above $T_f$, and $T_N$, due to the changing $E_Q$ at various temperatures. Isomer shift value ($0.7mm/s{\leq}{\delta}{\leq}0.9mm/s$) shows that the charge states are ferrous ($Fe^{2+}$), for all temperature range. The Debye temperature for the octahedral site was found to be ${\Theta}_D=260K$.