EuNiGe3, an equal moment anisotropic antiferromagnet

Abstract

Single crystals of EuNiGe$_3$ crystallizing in the non-centrosymmetric BaNiSn$_3$-type structure have been grown using In flux, enabling us to explore the anisotropic magnetic properties which was not possible with previously reported polycrystalline samples. The EuNiGe$_3$ single crystalline sample is found to order antiferromagnetically at 13.2 K as revealed from the magnetic susceptibility, heat capacity and electrical resistivity data. The low temperature magnetization M(H) is distinctly different for field parallel to ${ab}$-plane and $c$-axis; the ${ab}$-plane magnetization varies nearly linearly with field before the occurrence of an induced ferromagnetic phase (spin-flip) at 6.2 Tesla; on the other hand M(H) along the $c$-axis is accompanied by two metamagnetic transitions followed by a spin-flip at 4.1 T. A model including anisotropic exchange and dipole-dipole interactions reproduces the main features of magnetization plots but falls short of full representation. (H,T) phase diagrams have been constructed for the field applied along the principal directions. From the $^{151}$Eu M\"{o}ssbauer spectra, we determine that the 13.2 K transition leads to an incommensurate antiferromagnetic intermediate phase followed by a transition near 10.5 K to a commensurate antiferromagnetic configuration.