Magnetic properties of RPdGe (R=Gd,Dy,Ho,Er) compounds

Polycrystalline samples of RPdGe (R=Gd,Dy,Ho and Er) compounds were studied by magnetic and neutron powder diffraction experiments. All compounds exhi bit the orthorhombic CeCu2-type crystal structure. The RPdGe (R=Gd,Dy and E r) compounds are antiferromagnets with Neel temperatures of 17 K for R=Gd, 8.4 K for R=Dy and 3.0 K for R=Er, while HoPdGe is paramagnet down to 1.6 K . In the case of DyPdGe the magnetic moments are 8.3(4) mu(B) and form a no ncollinear antiferromagnetic structure with no change with increasing tempe rature. For HoPdGe, no magnetic ordering was detected down to 1.6 K. ErPdGe has a complicated magnetic structure which changes with increasing tempera ture. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.