Abrupt changes in the temperature dependence of the ESR linewidth of La1 − x Cax MnO3 single crystals

The temperature dependence of the ESR linewidth in La_{1 − x} Ca _x MnO₃ single crystals with various dopant concentrations (x = 0.18, 0.2, 0.22, 0.25, and 0.3) has been studied. An abrupt decrease in the ESR linewidth has been observed in the samples with a dopant concentration of x = 0.18 and 0.2 near the respective temperatures T _OO′ ≈ 260 and 240 K of the orthorhombic to pseudocubic structural phase transition. The abrupt decrease in the ESR linewidth by approximately 180 Oe has been also observed in the whole temperature range when the concentration is increased from x = 0.2 to x = 0.22. The formula for the fourth moment of the ESR line has been derived including both crystal fields and isotropic exchange interactions and taking into account the difference between the exchange coupling of a spin to its nearest in-plane and out-of-plane neighbors. The formula has been used to estimate the parameter D of the crystalline field on Mn³⁺ ions.