Single crystal and magnetic structures of maricite-type AgMnVO4

•We have been able to grow AgMnVO4 single crystals, using AgVO3 flux.•We solved its crystal structure using single crystal data.•We carried out magnetic susceptibility and specific heat measurements.•We solved the magnetic structure from low-temperature neutron powder diffraction data.•We compared the magnetic structure to that of NaFePO4.

Single crystals of the ternary manganese vanadate AgMnVO4, were grown using AgVO3 flux. The structure was determined from single crystal X-ray diffraction data. The magnetic structure and properties of AgMnVO4 were characterized by magnetic susceptibility, specific heat, and low-temperature neutron powder diffraction measurements. AgMnVO4 crystallizes in the maricite-type structure with space group Pnma, a=9.5393(12), b=6.8132(9), c=5.3315(7) Å and Z=4. AgMnVO4 contains MnO4 chains made up of edge-sharing MnO6 octahedra, and these chains are interlinked by the VO4 and AgO4 tetrahedra. The specific heat measurements indicate a 3D-antiferromagnetic ordering at ~12.1 K and the neutron powder diffraction measurements at 5 K show that the Mn2+magnetic moments are antiferromagnetically coupled within the chains which are antiferromagnetically coupled to each other.

Graphical abstractThe AgMnVO4 crystals could be grown in AgVO3 flux and the magnetic structure was determined from neutron powder diffraction data. The spins in each MnO4 chain along [0 1 0] are antiferromagnetically coupled, while these antiferromagnetic chains are antiferromagnetically coupled along [0 0 1] but have a non-collinear arrangement along [1 0 1].Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide