Structural, magnetic and electrical transport properties of non-conventionally prepared MAX phases V2AlC and (V/Mn)2AlC

A plethora of magnetic ground states along with intriguing magnetic properties have been reported in thin films of Mn-containing MAX phases. However, fewer results and therefore less knowledge in the area of bulk magnetic MAX phases exist resulting in many open research questions that still remain unanswered. Synthesis of high quality materials is key and is here achieved for bulk V₂AlC and its Mn-doped analogs by means of microwave heating and spark plasma sintering. The obtained materials are carefully characterized by structural and microstructural investigations resulting in an average Mn-content of 2% corresponding to the mean chemical composition of (V_0.96±0.02Mn_0.04±0.02)₂ALC in the Mn-doped V₂AlC samples. While the parent MAX phase as well as the sample with the nominally lowest Mn-content are obtained essentially single-phase, samples with higher Mn-levels exhibit Mn-rich side phases. These are most likely responsible for the ferromagnetic behavior of the corresponding bulk materials. Besides, we show Pauli paramagnetism of the parent compound V₂AlC and a combination of Pauli and Langevin paramagnetism in (V_0.96±0.02Mn_0.04±0.02)₂AlC. For the latter, a magnetic moment of μ_M = 0.2(2) μ_B per M atom can be extracted.