title: Epitaxial stabilization of ferromagnetism in the nanophase of FeGe.
abstract: Epitaxial nanocrystals of FeGe have been stabilized on Ge(111). The nanocrystals assume a quasi-one-dimensional shape as they grow exclusively along the <110> direction of the Ge(111) substrate, culminating in a compressed monoclinic modification of FeGe. Whereas monoclinic FeGe is antiferromagnetic in the bulk, the nanowires are surprisingly strong ferromagnets below approximately 200 K with an average magnetic moment of 0.8 microB per Fe atom. Density functional calculations indicate an unusual stabilization mechanism for the observed ferromagnetism: lattice compression destabilizes the antiferromagnetic Peierls-like ground state observed in the bulk while increased p-d hybridization suppresses the magnetic moments and stabilizes ferromagnetism.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996, USA.
authors.forename: Changgan
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.forename: P R C
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Kent
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Varela
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Eisenbach
authors.forename: G M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Stocks
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Torija
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Hanno H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Weitering