Superstructures at low spin–high spin transitions

In many transition-metal compounds, in particular those containing ${\mathrm{Fe}}^{2+}$ and ${\mathrm{Co}}^{3+},$ there occur spin-state transitions between low-spin and high-spin (or intermediate-spin) states. We show that typical interactions between similar spin-state ions are short-range repulsion and long-range interaction which can have different signs depending on the elastic anisotropy of the lattice and on the direction between respective ions. Due to such character of effective interactions at the spin-state transitions there may occur different superstructures—ordered arrangement of different spin states, which in particular may have the form of stripes. The properties of the system ${\mathrm{TlSr}}_2{\mathrm{CoO}}_5$ for which such a superstructure was recently observed experimentally are discussed from this point of view.