Soft spin waves in the low-temperature thermodynamics of Pr0.7Ca0.3MnO3

We present a detailed magnetothermal study of Pr0.7Ca0.3MnO3, a perovskite manganite in which an insulator-metal transition can be driven by magnetic field, but also by pressure, visible light, x rays, or high currents. Ne fi nd that the field-induced transition is associated with an enormous release of energy which accounts far its strong irreversibility. In the ferromagne tic metallic state, specific heat and magnetization measurements indicate a much smaller spin-wave stiffness than that seen in any other manganite, wh ich we attribute to spin waves among the ferromagnetically ordered Pr momen ts. The coupling between the Pr and Mn spins may also provide a basis for u nderstanding the low-temperature phase diagram of this most unusual mangani te.