Colossal magnetoresistance (CMR) is a large reduction of electrical resistance in response to an applied field. In this publication, the Tafti Lab students found one of the largest reported CMR in a new material Eu₅In₂As₆. This work was a collaboration between the graduate student, Sudhaman Balguri, and undergraduate student, Mira Mahendru. Together, they identified two distinct types of CMR occurring at different temperature regimes. The high-temperature CMR was attributed to the formation and percolation of magnetic polarons, while the low-temperature CMR was proposed to arise from charge ordering or other forms of electron localization. These results demonstrate the importance of interactions between the charge, spin, and lattice degrees of freedom in driving CMR in europium-based Zintl materials. The results were published as Editor’s Selection in Physical Review B.
