Magnetic transition of iron carbide at high pressures

High-pressure experiments and first-principles calculations were performed to investigate the compressibility and the magnetic properties of the iron carbide system, Fe3C. The experimental data indicate that a significant reduction in volume occurs without any major structural changes at 55 GPa. Our calculations show that this reduction in volume corresponds to a magnetic collapse from the ferromagnetic to the non-magnetic state. The magnetic phase diagram of Fe3C indicates that the non-magnetic state is stable under the conditions of the Earth's inner core. The equation of state for non-magnetic Fe3C up to 400 GPa was also studied to assess this materials as a candidate as a major component of the Earth's inner core. The isothermal bulk modulus of non-magnetic Fe3C at OK was found to be about twice as high as the experimental value of ferromagnetic Fe3C. The density of non-magnetic Fe3C is much lower than that in the inner core, as determined from the PREM model. This indicates that it is not possible that Fe3C is a major component of the Earth's inner core. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.