Phase-field simulation of magnetic microstructure and domain switching in (Tb0.27Dy0.73)Fe2 single crystal

The morphotropic phase boundary (MPB), separating two ferroic phases with rhombohedral and tetragonal crystal symmetries, has been utilized extensively in ferroelectrics because it can lead to high-performance piezoelectricity. Recently, a parallel ferromagnetic MPB was experimentally reported and was suggested that the optimal point for magneto-mechanical applications might lies on the rhombohedral side. However, the insight of the domain structures and switching mechanism near ferromagnetic MPB is still unclear. In this work, phase-field micromagnetic microelastic modeling was employed to simulate the domain formation and magnetization switching of (Tb0.27Dy0.73)Fe2, whose composition is around the rhombohedral side of ferromagnetic MPB. The results show that four kinds of domains of the rhombohedral phase automatically form twins of {110} or {100} boundaries with 71° and 109° domain walls after a process of nucleation and growth. The rhombohedral domain evolution and phase volume fraction under the external field of 120 kA/m along different directions are investigated. In ferromagnetics subject to an alternating magnetic field, domain magnetization switches to cause a magnetization hysteresis loop and an associated butterfly magnetostriction loop with the alternating magnetic field.