Magnetic structure determination of rare-earth based, high moment, 2D parent magnet.

The laminate (Mo_2/3Gd_1/3)2AlC, based on high-moment Gd, grows as pristine crystals and might exfoliate or be etched into two-dimensional magnets, but its properties are unknown since Gd is a strong neutron absorber. Bypassing this difficulty, the authors succeed in determining the magnetic structure by combining neutron diffraction studies on isostructural compounds with muon spin rotation studies including first-principles site calculations and, most importantly, angle dependent muon spin rotation.