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We report a detailed study of steplike metamagnetic transitions in polycrystalline Pr0.5Ca0.5Mn0.95Co0.05O3. The steps have a sudden onset below a critical temperature, are extremely sharp (width <2x10(-4) T), and occur at critical fields which are linearly dependent on the absolute value of the cooling field in which the sample is prepared. Similar transitions are also observed at low temperature in non-Co doped manganites, including single crystal samples. These data show that the steps are an intrinsic property, qualitatively different from either previously observed higher temperature metamagnetic transitions in the manganites or metamagnetic transitions observed in other materials.

Effect of particle size on the electron transport and magnetic properties of La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 has been investigated. While the ferromagnetic Tc, low field magnetic susceptibility, and insulator-metal transition are markedly affected by the particle size, the maximum magnetoresistance exhibited by the samples near Tc is not sensitive to the particle size. However, the magnetoresistance at 4.2 K increases with decrease in particle size, suggesting a substantial contribution by the grain boundaries. Preliminary measurements on La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 samples of different particle sizes also corroborate the above conclusions.

We examine the Mn concentration dependence of the electronic and magnetic properties of optimally annealed Ga 1Ϫx Mn x As epilayers for 1.35%рxр8.3%. The Curie temperature (T c ), conductivity, and exchange energy increase with Mn concentration up to xϳ0.05, but are almost constant for larger x, with T c ϳ110 K. The ferromagnetic moment per Mn ion decreases monotonically with increasing x, implying that an increasing fraction of the Mn spins do not participate in the ferromagnetism. By contrast, the derived domain wall thickness, an important parameter for device design, remains surprisingly constant.