arXiv · 1512.04571
Dilution effects in spin 7/2 systems. The case of the antiferromagnet GdRhIn$_5$
Abstract
We report the structural and magnetic characterization of La-substituted Gd$_{1-x}$La$_x$RhIn$_5$ ($x\leq$ 0.50) antiferromagnetic (AFM) compounds. The magnetic responses of pure GdRhIn$_5$ are well described by a $S=7/2$ Heisenberg model. When Gd$^{3+}$ ions are substituted by La$^{3+}$, the maximum of the susceptibility and the inflection point of the magnetic specific heat are systematically shifted to lower temperatures accompanied by a broadening of the transition. The data is qualitatively explained by a phenomenological model which incorporates a distribution of magnetic regions with different transition temperatures ($T_N$). The universal behaviour of the low temperature specific heat is found for La (vacancies) concentrations below $x=0.40$ which is consistent with spin wave excitations. For $x=0.5$ this universal behaviour is lost. The sharp second order transition of GdRhIn$_5$ is destroyed, as seen in the specific heat data, contrary to what is expected for a Heisenberg model. The results are discussed in the context of the magnetic behavior observed for the La-substituted (Ce,Tb,Nd)RhIn$_5$ compounds.
Explore related subjects
Keep this discovery
Raimundo Lora Serrano, Daniel Julio Garcia, Diana Betancourth, Robert Prudêncio Amaral, Nilmar Camilo, Ernesto Estévez Rams, Luis Antonio Ortellado Gómez Zelada, Pascoal Giglio Pagliuso. 2015-12-14. Dilution effects in spin 7/2 systems. The case of the antiferromagnet GdRhIn$_5$. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmmm.2015.12.093
Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.