Bonding mechanism and magnetic ordering in Laves phase λ1−MgCo2 intermetallic compound from theoretical and experimental studies

In the present work we have studied the bonding mechanism and magnetism in a hexagonal λ1−MgCo2 Laves phase intermetallic formed at rA/rB= 1.280. Ab initio theoretical calculations for MgCo2 using the projector-augmented wave method implemented in the VASP code showed that Mg carries a formal charge +1.7 |e| while Co atoms are also positively charged with around +0.7 |e| being donated to establish the interatomic covalent Co-Co bonding in a three-dimensional network of Co tetrahedra. MgCo2 is a metallic conductor with ferromagnetic properties and TC=303 K. Neutron Powder Diffraction study showed a collinear ordering of the Co moments, their alignment along the c-axis of the hexagonal unit cell with an average moment of 1.51(2) μB/atom Co. Ab initio computational studies indicate that the Co moments reach the experimentally observed value approx.1.5 μB when the unit cell volume exceeds 160 Å3 (average Co-Co distances 2.43 Å).