Band structure and itinerant magnetism in quantum critical NbFe₂

We report first-principles calculations of the band structure and magnetic ordering in the C14 Laves phase compound NbFe2. The magnetism is itinerant in the sense that the moments are highly dependent on ordering. We find an overestimation of the magnetic tendency within the local spin-density approximation, similar to other metals near magnetic quantum critical points. We also find a competition between different magnetic states due to band-structure effects. These lead to competing magnetic tendencies due to competing interlayer interactions, one favoring a ferrimagnetic solution and the other an antiferromagnetic state. While the structure contains Kagome lattice sheets, which could, in principle, lead to strong magnetic frustration, the calculations do not show dominant nearest-neighbor antiferromagnetic interactions within these sheets. These results are discussed in relation to experimental observations.