The Role of Order-Disorder Transitions in the Quest for Molecular Multiferroics: Structural and Magnetic Neutron Studies of a Mixed Valence Iron(II)-Iron(III) Formate Framework

Neutron diffraction studies have been carried out to shed light on the unprecedented order-disorder phase transition (ca. 155 K) observed in the mixed-valence iron(II)-iron(III) formate framework compound [NH2(CH3)(2)](n)[(FeFeII)-Fe-III(HCOO)(6)](n). The crystal structure at 220 K was first determined from Laue diffraction data, then a second refinement at 175 K and the crystal structure determination in the low temperature phase at 45 K were done with data from the monochromatic high resolution single crystal diffractometer D19. The 45 K nuclear structure reveals that the phase transition is associated with the order-disorder of the dimethylammonium counterion that is weakly anchored in the cavities of the [(FeFeII)-Fe-III(HCOO)(6)](n) framework. In the low-temperature phase, a change in space group from P (3) over bar 1c to R (3) over barc occurs, involving a tripling of the c-axis due to the ordering of the dimethylammonium counterion. The occurrence of this nuclear phase transition is associated with an electric transition, from paraelectric to antiferroelectric. A combination of powder and single crystal neutron diffraction measurements below the magnetic order transition (ca. 37 K) has been used to determine unequivocally the magnetic structure of this Neel N-Type ferrimagnet, proving that the ferrimagnetic behavior is due to a noncompensation of the different Fe-II and Fe-III magnetic moments.