Magnetotransport evidence of irreversible spin reorientation in the collinear antiferromagnetic state of underdoped ${\mathrm{N}\mathrm{d}}_{2-x}{\mathrm{C}\mathrm{e}}_x{\mathrm{C}\mathrm{u}\mathrm{O}}_4$

We make use of the strong spin-charge coupling in the electron-doped cuprate ${\mathrm{N}\mathrm{d}}_{2-x}{\mathrm{C}\mathrm{e}}_x{\mathrm{C}\mathrm{u}\mathrm{O}}_4$ to probe changes in its spin system via magnetotransport measurements. We present a detailed study of the out-of-plane magnetoresistance in underdoped single crystals of this compound, including the nonsuperconducting, $0.05\le x\le 0.115$, and superconducting, $0.12\le x\le 0.13$, compositions. Special focus is put on the dependence of the magnetoresistance on the field orientation in the plane of the CuO${}_2$ layers. In addition to the kink at the field-induced transition between the noncollinear and collinear antiferromagnetic configurations, a sharp irreversible feature is found in the angle-dependent magnetoresistance of all samples in the high-field regime, at field orientations around the Cu–O–Cu direction. The obtained behavior can be explained in terms of field-induced reorientation of Cu${}^{2+}$ spins within the collinear antiferromagnetic state. It is, therefore, considered as an unambiguous indication of the long-range magnetic order.