Characterizing Curie and Néel Point Phase Transitions via Thermal Techniques

Various magnetic materials (for example, ferro, ferri, antiferromagnetic) are characterized by their respective transition temperatures (for example, Curie and Néel transitions). Knowledge of these transition temperatures is vital from an application standpoint. Accurate measurements by suitable characterization techniques are needed for identifying these transitions. Several techniques have been used to identify Curie and Néel transition temperatures, with thermal methods being one of the preferred choice. These thermal methods include differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), differential thermal analysis, and thermogravimetric analysis. Although thermal analysis tools have been popularly used for examining magnetic phase transitions, still much confusion exists on their efficacy and might. This review article highlights the strength and limitations of measuring Curie and Néel transitions by thermal techniques; measurements by DSC were the most common choice in previous works. Considering the intrinsic/fundamental nature of these Curie/Néel transitions, such confusion on their measurements (by thermal techniques) and their subsequent analysis (for the order of transition) suggests that a more comprehensive understanding of the events should be an immediate future goal for the research community, at large.