Pressure effects on the stability of magnetic structure of Mn ₃Zn_1-xGe_x N (x=0,0.1)

This paper reports that the pressure effects on the electronic transport properties of Mn₃ZnN and Mn₃Zn_0.9Ge _0.1N were measured under pressures up to 2.4 GPa. Cooling and warming cycles of the temperature-dependent magnetization curves of Mn₃ZnN show a hysteresis phenomenon near the transition, implying a first order transition. The cracks which appear in the vicinity of magnetic transition at ambient pressure for Mn₃ZnN and at applied pressures not more than 0.3 GPa for Mn₃Zn_0.9Ge_0.1N are restrained under higher pressures. The paramagnetic-antiferromagnetic transition temperature TN decreases almost linearly at the rate of 1.9 and 51 K/GPa for Mn₃ZnN and Mn₃Zn_0.9Ge_0.1N respectively, which is explained by the model of TN discussed by Fruchart and the Labb́-Jardin tight-binding approximation model.