Giant magnetostriction effect near onset of spin reorientation in MnBi

In materials undergoing spontaneous symmetry breaking transitions, the emergence of multiple competing order parameters is pervasive. Employing in-field x-ray diffraction, we investigate the temperature and magnetic field dependence of the crystallographic structure of MnBi, elucidating the microscopic interplay between lattices and spin. The hexagonal phase of MnBi undergoes a spin reorientation transition (T-SR), whereby the easy axis direction changes from the c axis to the basal plane. Across T-SR, an abrupt symmetry change is accompanied by a clear sign change in the magnetostrictive coefficient, revealing that this transition corresponds to the onset of the spin reorientation. In the vicinity of T-SR, a significantly larger in-plane magnetostrictive effect is observed, presenting the emergence of an intermediate phase that is highly susceptible to an applied magnetic field. X-ray linear dichroism shows that asymmetric Bi and Mn p orbitals do not play a role in the spin reorientation. This work suggests that the spin reorientation is caused by structural modification rather than changes in the local electronic configuration, providing a strategy for manipulating the magnetic anisotropy by external strain. Published by AIP Publishing.