Electronic and magnetic properties of the Mn$_2$CrSn Heusler alloy: first-principles investigations

This work studies the electronic and magnetic properties of the stoichiometric Heusler alloy Mn$_2$CrSn depending on the applied pressure, using density functional theory. It is shown that two magnetic states with a low (LMS) and high (HMS) magnetic moment can exist in the alloy at a smaller and larger unit cell volume, separated by an energy barrier. When a confining pressure of 1 GPa is applied, these states become degenerate in energy. The LMS phase is characterized by pseudo semi-metallic and metallic behavior, while the HMS phase has metallic properties. The magnetic exchange interaction constants, and the Curie temperature in the LMS phase take lower values than in the HMS phase.