Kinetic-arrest-induced phase coexistence and metastability in (Mn, Fe)2(P, Si)

Neutron diffraction, Mossbauer spectroscopy, magnetometry, and in-field x-ray diffraction are employed to investigate the magnetoelastic phase transition in hexagonal (Mn, Fe)(2)(P, Si) compounds. (Mn, Fe)(2)(P, Si) compounds undergo for certain compositions a second-order paramagnetic (PM) to a spin-density-wave (SDW) phase transition before further transforming into a ferromagnetic (FM) phase via a first-order phase transition. The SDW-FM transition can be kinetically arrested, causing the coexistence of FM and untransformed SDW phases at low temperatures. Our in-field x-ray diffraction and magnetic relaxation measurements clearly reveal the metastability of the untransformed SDW phase. This unusual magnetic configuration originates from the strong magnetoelastic coupling and the mixed magnetism in hexagonal (Mn, Fe)(2)(P, Si) compounds.