Magnetic characteristics of RAgGa compounds

Abstract

The bulk magnetic characteristics of the series of polycrystalline compounds RAgGa (where R is Pr, Nd, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, or Tm) have been determined in applied fields up to 26 kOe and temperatures from 3 to 300 K. These compounds form with the body-centered orthorhombic crystal structure of the CeCu2 type. At high temperatures their reciprocal susceptibilities follow Curie-Weiss type behavior; their effective paramagnetic moments are in reasonable agreement with those calculated for the appropriate tripositive rare-earth ion; their asymptotic Curie temperatures are all relatively small and positive. At low temperatures, the Gd, Ho, and Er compounds order ferromagnetically; the Tb compound orders antiferromagnetically; the Dy compound is metamagnetic; the Pr and Tm compounds almost order ferromagnetically at the lowest measured temperature.