Role of structural factors in formation of chiral magnetic soliton lattice in Cr1/3NbS2

The sign and strength of magnetic interactions not only between nearest neighbors, but also for longer-range neighbors in the Cr1/3NbS2 intercalation compound have been calculated on the basis of structural data. It has been found that left-handed spin helices in Cr1/3NbS2 are formed from strength-dominant at low temperatures antiferromagnetic (AFM) interactions between triangular planes of Cr(3+)ions through the plane of just one of two crystallographically equivalent diagonals of side faces of embedded into each other trigonal prisms building up the crystal lattice of magnetic Cr3+ ions. These helices are oriented along the c axis and packed into two-dimensional triangular lattices in planes perpendicular to these helices directions and lay one upon each other with a displacement. The competition of the above AFM helices with weaker inter-helix AFM interactions could promote the emergence of a long-period helical spin structure. One can assume that in this case, the role of Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction consists of final ordering and stabilization of chiral spin helices into a chiral magnetic soliton lattice. The possibility of emergence of solitons in M1/3NbX2 and M1/3TaX2 (M = Cr, V, Ti, Rh, Ni, Co, Fe, and Mn; X = S and Se) intercalate compounds has been examined. Two important factors caused by the crystal structure (predominant chiral magnetic helices and their competition with weaker inter-helix interactions not destructing the system quasi-one-dimensional character) can be used for the crystal chemistry search of solitons. (C) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.