On the Mechanism of the Spin State Transition of (Pr1-ySmy)1-xCaxCoO3

Abstract: Transport, thermal and magnetic measurements have been carried out on (Pr1-ySmy)1-xCaxCoO3. The system exhibits a structural phase transition accompanied by the spin state change from the intermediate spin (IS) state to the low spin (LS) state with decreasing temperature T. We have constructed a T-y phase diagram for x=0.3 and T-x ones for y=0.2 and 0.3. By analyzing their magnetic susceptibilities, the number of Co ions excited to IS state (or the electron number in the eg orbitals), nIS, are roughly estimated. With increasing y or with decreasing x, nIS decreases, and the phase transition changes gradually to the (IS-LS) crossover-like one. We discuss on the possible role of the Pr atoms in realizing the transition.