Abstract
The unusual width of the (101) and (102) magnetic reflections of antiferromagnetic K2NiF4 shows the existence of stacking faults in the piling up of the antiferromagnetic sheets. The probabilities of such faults at various temperatures are determined and show an increase with temperature. It is then shown that lowering of the free energy is obtained by considering exchange striction from a slight orthorhombic distortion; ungrouped stacking faults lead to an additional lowering of the free energy.

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