Devitrification of a glass-like arrested ferromagnetic phase in La0.5Ca0.5MnO3

Magnetization measurements in La0.5Ca0.5MnO3 manganite show that the high-temperature long-range ferromagnetic-metallic phase transforms to antiferromagnetic-insulating phase, although a fraction of ferromagnetic-metallic phase undergoes glass-like kinetic arrest and coexists at low temperature with the equilibrium antiferromagnetic-insulating phase. We show here through resistivity measurements that the residual arrested ferromagnetic-metallic fraction can be converted to the equilibrium antiferromagnetic-insulating phase by successive annealing at higher temperatures, possibly through heterogeneous nucleation of equilibrium phase. Significantly, larger fractions of this glassy ferromagnetic-metallic phase can be obtained by cooling in higher fields and larger conversion to equilibrium antiferromagnetic-insulating phase results.