Magnetic Anisotropy and Electrical Resistivity in Exchange Inversion Compounds

Magnetic anisotropy and electrical resistivity have been determined for several materials of composition Mn2−xCrxSb, which exhibit a ferrimagnetic to antiferromagnetic phase transformation with decreasing temperature. Magnetocrystalline anisotropy is similar in its temperature behavior to that of Mn2Sb with slight differences attributed to changes in magnetic moment of the Mn sublattices. Resistivity is attributed to electron-magnon scattering. The magnetocrystalline anisotropy at the two Mn sites of nearly equal magnitude but opposite sign is consistent with the small anisotropy of the magnetoresistance.