Novel magnetic behavior of single crystalline Er2PdSi3

TL;DR

This study reveals novel magnetic phenomena in single crystalline Er2PdSi3, showing strong anisotropy in magnetic responses and unique features not observed in related compounds, with implications for understanding complex magnetic interactions.

Contribution

The paper reports the discovery of unusual magnetic behavior and anisotropy in Er2PdSi3, including multiple magnetic transitions and field-dependent effects, expanding knowledge of magnetic properties in this material series.

Findings

Multiple magnetic transitions at 7 K and 2 K for H//[0001]

Additional features at 11 K and 23 K for H//[2 -1 -1 0]

Strong magnetic anisotropy with different magnetization behaviors

Abstract

We report the results of ac and dc magnetic susceptibility (chi) and electrical resistivity (rho) measurements on the single crystals of Er2PdSi3, crystallizing in an AlB2-derived hexagonal structure, for two orientations H//[0001] and H//[2 -1 -1 0]. For H//[0001], there are apparently two magnetic transitions as revealed by the ac chi data, one close to 7 K attributable to antiferromagnetic ordering and the other around 2 K. However, for H // [2 -1 -1 0], we observe additional features above 7 K (near 11 and 23 K) in the plot of low-field chi(T); also, there is no corresponding anomaly in the rho(T) plot. In this respect, the magnetic behavior of this compound is novel, particularly while compared with other members of this series. The features in ac chi respond differently to the application of a small dc magnetic field for the two directions. As far as low temperature (T= 1.8 and 5 K) isothermal magnetization (M) behaviour is concerned, it exhibits meta-magnetic-like features around 2 kOe saturating at high fields for the former orientation, whereas for the latter, there is no saturation even at 120 kOe. The sign of paramagnetic Curie temperature is different for these two directions. Thus, there is a strong anisotropy in the magnetic behavior. However, interestingly, the rho(T) plots are found to be essentially isotropic, with the data revealing possible formation of magnetic superzone formation below 7 K.