Long-range ferromagnetism of Mn12 acetate single-molecule magnets under a transverse magnetic field.
We use neutron diffraction to probe the magnetization components of a crystal of Mn12 single-molecule magnets. Each of these molecules behaves, at low temperatures, as a nanomagnet with spin S = 10 and strong anisotropy along the crystallographic c axis. The application of a magnetic field H(perpendicular) perpendicular to c induces quantum tunneling between opposite spin orientations, enabling the spins to attain thermal equilibrium. For T approximately < 0.9(1) K, this equilibrium state shows spontaneous magnetization, indicating the onset of ferromagnetism. These long-range magnetic correlations nearly disappear for mu0H(perpendicular) approximately > 5.5 T, possibly suggesting the existence of a quantum critical point.
Luis
F
F
Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Aragón, CSIC-Universidad de Zaragoza, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain. fluis@unizar.es
Campo
J
J
Gómez
J
J
McIntyre
G J
GJ
Luzón
J
J
Ruiz-Molina
D
D