2007 Volume 54 Issue 1 Pages 53-57
Magnetic and electrical properties of InFe2O4 were investigated. InFe2O4 belongs to the RFe2O4 family where R is trivalent cation (R= In, Yb, Lu, Er, or Y). In the rhombohedral crystal structure of this compound, the double layers of FeO5 bipyramids make two-dimensional triangular lattices and are separated by RO6 octahedra. Since the numbers of Fe2+ and Fe3+ ions are equal in the triangular lattice, the coexistence of charge and magnetic frustrations is expected. We succeeded in preparing high-quality InFe2O4 samples by a solid state reaction from In2O3, Fe and Fe2O3 in a vacuum sealed tube. A small amount of Fe3O4 was magnetically separated. The dielectric constant, magnetic susceptibility, high-field magetization, Mössbauer spectroscopy, and the specific heat data suggested that charge and ferrimagnetic ordering took place simultaneously at 240K in this compound.