A powder neutron diffraction study of the metallic ferromagnet Co3Sn2S2

Variable-temperature powder neutron diffraction data reveal that Co3Sn2S2 crystallizes in the shandite structure (space group R3¯m, a = 5.36855(3) Å, c = 13.1903(1) Å at 300 K). The structural relationship between Co3Sn2S2 and the intermetallic compound CoSn, both of which contain Kagomé nets of cobalt atoms, is discussed. Resistivity and Seebeck coefficient measurements for Co3Sn2S2 are consistent with metallic behaviour. Magnetic susceptibility measurements indicate that Co3Sn2S2 orders ferromagnetically at 180(10) K, with a saturation moment of 0.29 μB per cobalt atom at 5 K. The onset of magnetic ordering is accompanied by marked anomalies in the electrical transport properties.

Graphical abstractThe Kagomé net formed by the cobalt atoms (blue) in Co3Sn2S2.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide