Pressure Dependencies of the Superconducting and Magnetic Critical Temperatures of Ternary Rhodium Borides

Abstract

The pressure dependencies of the superconducting and magnetic transition temperatures of ternary rhodium borides, MRh4B4, are reported for hydrostatic pressures up to 21 kbar. The magnetic ordering temperature Is enhanced by pressure for every magnetic compound (M=Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho). In contrast, the superconducting transition temperature, T, may be either increased or depressed by pressure depending on the size of the third atom (M= Nd, Sm, Er, Tm, Lu, Th, Y). For the lutetium ternary an unusual nonlinear pressure dependence of Tc may indicate the presence of a pressure induced phase transformation.