Experimental observation of charge ordering in nanocrystalline Pr0.65Ca0.35MnO3

Observation of charge ordering in single crystalline and bulk polycrystalline systems of various rare-earth based manganites is well documented. However, there is hardly any manifestation of the same when the grain size is reduced to nanoscale. We have observed charge ordering in the case of nanocrystalline Pr0.65Ca0.35MnO3 of average particle size 40 nm. This phenomenon is attributed to the primary role played by the martensitic character of the charge order transition in the material.