A Cautionary Tale: Treatment of the Magnetic State in the Cantor-Wu Alloys

Previously, we examined the nature of atomic short-range order and the overall phase stability of the high-entropy Cantor alloy, CrMnFeCoNi, and its derivatives when modelled in their paramagnetic states within the disordered local moment (DLM) pictureDisordered Local Moment (DLM) Picture, which we believe to be reflective of the electronic structure of these materials at typical processing temperatures. However, it is also possible to model these systems in magnetically ordered (ferrimagnetic) and non-magnetic states. In this chapter, we examine the consequences of differing treatements of magnetism on predicted atomic ordering tendencies. Our results shed light on competition between MoPt \(_2\) and L1 \(_2\) ordering in CrCoNi, as well as on how the strength of interactions between Fe, Mn, and other elements depends on how magnetism is treated. These results also have experimental implications, as they suggest it may be possible to tune the nature of atomic arrangements in some multicomponent alloys by applying a magnetic field during the annealing process.