Investigation of multiferroic ε-Fe2O3 using soft x-ray RIXS-MCD

Multiferroic materials are of significant interest for spintronic and electronic applications. Of such materials, e-Fe2O3 is interesting because it is a hard ferrimagnet that exhibits strong magnetoelectric coupling at room temperature. Because the electronic structure has yet to be resolved, the origin of the multiferroicity is unclear. Here we will use the RIXS-MCD spectrometer at ID-32 to investigate the d-d excitations of e-Fe2O3 nanoparticles in both the low temperature incommensurate and room temperature ferrimagnetic (multiferroic) magnetic phases. Cr-doped samples (with missing eg orbital electrons) will provide further information about the role of the eg orbitals. This experiment will provide an improved understanding of the physics that underpin multiferroic perovskites.