Heat capacity and magnetic properties of aEuVO3single crystal

Abstract

We have studied the heat capacity and magnetic properties of a $\mathrm{Eu}\mathrm{V}{\mathrm{O}}_{3}$ single crystal. The compound undergoes an orbital ordering transition at ${T}_{\mathrm{O}\mathrm{O}}=204\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$, which is then followed by a spin ordering transition at ${T}_{\mathrm{S}\mathrm{O}}=131\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$. In the spin ordered region, we have found that the compound is very sensitive to small trapped fields present in the superconducting solenoid of a magnetometer during cooling. Large negative Weiss temperatures are seen along all principal crystallographic axes indicating that strong antiferromagnetic interactions are present in this compound. Nevertheless, at low temperatures, we observed open hysteresis loops with a relatively high remanent magnetization and coercivity. We discuss the results for $\mathrm{Eu}\mathrm{V}{\mathrm{O}}_{3}$ in terms of an inhomogeneity with random fields.