Magnetic anisotropy and magnetodielectric coefficients in Cr2O3 and Fe0.4Cr1.6O3

• Magnetic and magnetodielectric properties of Cr2O3 and Fe0.4Cr1.6O3 were investigated.
• Fe doping into the crystal lattice of Cr2O3 decreases the Neel Temperature by ∼80 K.
• The maximum for Fe0.4Cr1.6O3 occurs at 80 K below that for Cr2O3.
• Magnetic anisotropy and magnetodielectric coefficients showed similar maxima.
• Magnetic and magnetodielectric properties are physically interrelated.

The temperature dependence of magnetization, magnetic anisotropy, coercive field and the magnetodielectric coefficient of Cr2O3 (undoped) and Fe0.4Cr1.6O3 (doped) was experimentally investigated. Test data shows that the presence of Fe ions at the interstitial spaces of the Cr2O3 crystal lattice decreases the Neel Temperature by ∼80 K when compared to the undoped Cr2O3. Also both the doped and undoped samples display maxima in magnetic anisotropy and magnetodielectric coefficient as a function of temperature. The maxima for the Fe doped samples occurs at a temperature approximately 80 K below the temperature measured for the Cr2O3 samples, i.e. similar to the shift observed in the Neel Temperature. These results suggest that Neel Temperature, magnetic anisotropy, and the magnetodielectric coefficients are physically interrelated through competing principal exchange interactions and may provide a useful approach to search for new multiferroic materials.