Magnetic properties of electron-doped La0.23Ca0.77MnO3 nanoparticles

Magnetic properties of electron-doped La0.23Ca0.77MnO3 manganite nanoparticles, with average size of 12 and 60 nm, prepared by the glycine–nitrate method, have been investigated in the temperature range 5–300 K and magnetic fields up to 90 kOe. It is suggested that weak ferromagnetic moment results from ferromagnetic shells of the basically antiferromagnetic nanoparticles and from domains of frustrated disordered phase in the core. Assumption of two distinct sources of ferromagnetism is supported by the appearance of two independent ferromagnetic contributions in the fit of the T 3/2 Bloch law to spontaneous magnetization. The ferromagnetic components, which are more pronounced in smaller particles, occupy only a small fraction of the nanoparticle volume and the antiferromagnetic ground state remains stable. It is found that the magnetic hysteresis loops following field cooled processes, display size-dependent horizontal and vertical shifts, namely, exhibiting exchange bias effect. Time-dependent magnetization dynamics demonstrating two relaxation rates were observed at constant magnetic fields upon cooling to T < 100 K.