Magnetic and Magneto-Optical Properties of Fe_75-xMn₂₅Ga_x Heusler-like Compounds

Fe_75-xMn₂₅Ga_x Heusler-like compounds were investigated in a wide range of Fe/Ga ratios while keeping the Mn content constant and equal 25 at% in order to elucidate the interplay between magnetic properties and composition. Materials were prepared by arc-melting from pure elements and subsequently annealed. Experimental investigations were focused on magnetization behavior in a wide temperature range from 4 to 1000 K and magnetic field up to 9 T. Optical and magneto-optical (MO) measurements were employed to shed more light on the magnetic state and electronic structure of investigated materials. Magnetization measurements indicated that in the vicinity of stoichiometry (Fe₂MnGa) the compounds are ferro/ferrimagnetic, whereas the Fe-deficient compound is paramagnetic and at high Fe concentration the antiferromagnetic interaction prevails. Theoretical calculations of corresponding ordered and disordered stoichiometric compounds were carried out and compared to the experiment on the level of net magnetic moment as well as magneto-optical spectra. This comparison suggests that the Heusler crystal structure, L2₁, is not present even close to stoichiometry. Moreover, the comparison of density of states (DOS) for ordered and disordered structures allowed us to explain missing martensitic transformation (MT) in investigated materials.