Magnetic transition, lattice variation and electronic transport properties of Ag-doped Mn3Ni1-xAgxN antiperovskite compounds

Antiperovskite compounds Mn3Ni1-xAgxN (x = 0.2, 0.5, 0.8, 1.0) were synthesized and investigated. Around room temperature, a low-temperature coefficient of resistivity, L-TCR, and isotropic negative thermal expansion were observed, accompanying the magnetic transitions, which provides strong evidence of a correlation between spin, lattice and charge. The L-TCR was found to be 47 ppm K-1 (285-350 K) for Mn3AgN. It is thought that spin-disorder scattering is responsible for the L-TCR behavior. (C) 2012 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.