Comparison of magnetisation and transport properties of processed La0.67Ca0.33MnO3 manganites for technological application

A lot of efforts are being made to look for suitable types of colossal magnetoresistance (CMR) materials with specific composition for technological applications. We have synthesised and performed the magnetisation and transport studies on La0.67Ca0.33Mn03 CMR polycrystalline materials prepared using melt and sintering technique. It is observed that the magnetoresistance is enhanced in partially melted sample with increase in insulator-to-metal transition (TMI) temperature enabling its possible applications at room temperature. This indicates the high degree of spin polarisation of the conduction electrons in partially melted sample. It has been observed that grain boundaries disrupt the local magnetic order and alter the electrical conduction of polarised electrons whereas the magnetisation behaviour is not significantly affected except the magnitude of the magnetisation. This suggests that the magnetic spin alignment in the weak link region of the sintered sample increases the absolute magnetisation. The melt processed method is the ideal method to achieve superior magnetic and transport properties for possible major technological application of colossal magnetoresistive devices. Copyright © 2018 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.