The synthesis and magnetic properties of BaFe2Se3 single crystals

Abstract

The iron selenide compound BaFe2Se3 was synthesized by a two-step high-temperature solid state method. The single-crystal X-ray determination of the prepared compound revealed a three-dimensional structure consisting of double chains of edge-sharing FeSe4 tetrahedra separated by Ba2+. In contrast to the case for alkali metal intercalated iron-based chalcogenides (like KxFe2-ySe2), the double chains of BaFe2Se3 were cut out of the two-dimension layers. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements indicated that there existed two valence states of iron: Fe2+ and Fe3+, which proved there were vacancies in the iron sites. In addition, the magnetic measurements demonstrated that BaFe2Se3 was antiferromagnetic and the Neel temperature of the sample was related to the average electronic spin of iron sites.