57Fe and 151Eu Mössbauer studies of 3d-4f spin interplay in EuFe2−xNixAs2

The EuFe2−xNixAs2 (with 0 ≤ x ≤ 0.4) compounds exhibiting 3d and/or 4f magnetic order were investigated by means of 57Fe and 151Eu Mössbauer spectroscopy. Additionally, results for EuNi2As2 are reported for comparison. It was found that spin-density-wave order of the Fe itinerant moments is monotonically suppressed by Ni-substitution. However, the 3d magnetic order survives at the lowest temperature up to at least x = 0.12 and it is certainly completely suppressed for x = 0.20. The Eu localized moments order regardless of the Ni concentration, but undergo a spin reorientation with increasing x from alignment parallel to the a-axis in the parent compound, toward c-axis alignment for x > 0.07. Change of the 4f spins ordering from antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic takes place simultaneously with a disappearance of the 3d spins order what is the evidence of a strong coupling between magnetism of Eu2+ ions and the conduction electrons of [Fe2−xNixAs2]2- layers. The Fe nuclei experience the transferred hyperfine magnetic field due to the Eu2+ ordering for Ni-substituted samples with x > 0.04, while the transferred field is undetectable in EuFe2As2 and for compound with a low Ni-substitution level. It seems that the 4f ferromagnetic component arising from a tilt of the Eu2+ moments to the crystallographic c-axis leads to the transferred magnetic field at the Fe atoms. Superconductivity is not observed down to 1.8 K, although a comparison with 57Fe and 151Eu Mössbauer data for EuFe2As2-based superconductors indicates a similar magnetic structure.