On the Magnetism of C14 Nb(Fe89.4Al10.6)2 Laves Phase Intermetallic Compound

TL;DR

This study investigates the magnetic properties of the C14 Nb(Fe89.4Al10.6)2 Laves phase intermetallic compound, revealing a re-entrant magnetic behavior with a mixed ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic ground state.

Contribution

It provides detailed magnetization measurements and identifies the re-entrant magnetism and mixed magnetic ground state in this specific intermetallic compound.

Findings

Irreversible magnetization curves that vanish at high fields

Well-defined Néel temperature at 72.3 K

Evidence of re-entrant and mixed magnetic states

Abstract

C14 Nb(Fe89.4Al10.6)2 Laves phase intermetallic compound was investigated by DC magnetization (M) measurements performed in the temperature (T) interval of 20 to 175 K,under an applied magnetic field (H) ranging between 50 and 1250 Oe. Magnetization curves were recorded in the field-cooled (FC) and in the zero-field-cooled (ZFC) modes. They clearly showed an irreversible character that vanished at H=1250 Oe. Both magnetization curves exhibited well-defined peaks around T_N =72.3 K whose positions were H-independent, so they were identified as the compound's N\'eel temperature. The existence of irreversibility which decreases with H testify to a re-entrant character of magnetism in the studied compound. An increase of both MFC and MZFC observed below TN likely indicates a mixed i.e. ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic ground magnetic state of the studied system.