Detection of the magnetic and electric transitions by electron paramagnetic resonance and low-field microwave absorption in the magnetoelectric Pb(Fe0.5Ta0.5)O3

An electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) study of Pb(Fe0.5Ta0.5)O-3 powder samples in perovskite-type structure at X-band (8.8-9.8 GHz), in the 120-300 K temperature range, is presented. For all the temperatures, the EPR spectra show a single broad line attributable to Fe3+ ions. The onset of the ferro-paraelectric and antiferro-paramagnetic transitions has been determined from the temperature dependence of parameters deduced from the EPR spectra: the peak-to-peak linewidth (Delta H-pp), the resonance field (H-res) and the integrated intensity (I-EPR). Low-field microwave absorption (LFMA) is used to give further knowledge on this material; where this technique also gives evidence of the magnetic and electric orders. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.