Crystal structure of Tb5Ni2In4 and Y5Ni2In4, and magnetic properties of Dy5Ni2In4

Abstract

The crystal structure of the R5Ni2In4 intermetallic compounds was earlier reported for R = Ho, Er, Tm, and Lu (Lu5Ni2In4-type, oP22, Pbam); more recently the isostructural phases Dy5Ni2In4 and Sc5Ni2In4 have also been identified. Three inequivalent crystallographic sites are occupied by the R atoms in these compounds. We have synthesized and characterized Dy5Ni2In4 and the two new isotypic compounds Tb5Ni2In4 and Y5Ni2In4. So far, none of the physical properties have been reported on any of these phases; in this article we report on the physical properties of the Dy5Ni2In4 and the crystal structure of Tb5Ni2In4 and Y5Ni2In4 compounds. Measurements of the magnetic properties performed on Dy5Ni2In4 show a ferromagnetic-like ordering with a TC ≈105 K, followed by multiple magnetic orderings at lower temperatures. The fit of the inverse susceptibility in the paramagnetic state follows the Curie-Weiss law, where μeff. = 10.3 μB/Dy-atom (close to theoretical value of 10.64 μB for the free ion Dy3+) and a positive paramagnetic Curie temperature θp = 58 K. Ni atoms are most likely to be nonmagnetic. The heat capacity also shows three peaks: a large one at 103 K and two weaker at 12 and 8 K, respectively; the in-field heat capacity data corroborate these results, suggesting ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic orderings at the temperature of 103 and 12 K, respectively. Low temperature x-ray diffraction has shown that the compound does not undergo any structural change down to 5 K.