High temperature specific heat and magnetic measurements in Nd0.5Sr0.5MnO3 and R0.5Ca0.5MnO3 (R=Nd, Sm, Dy and Ho) samples

Abstract

We have made a magnetic characterization of Nd0.5Sr0.5MnO3, Nd0.5Ca0.5MnO3, Sm0.5Ca0.5MnO3, Dy0.5Ca0.5MnO3 and Ho0.5Ca0.5MnO3 polycrystalline samples. Ferromagnetic, antiferromagnetic and charge ordering transitions in our samples agree with previous reports. We also report specific heat measurements with applied magnetic fields between 0 and 9 T and temperatures between 2 and 300 K in all cases. Each curve was successfully fitted at high temperatures by an Einstein model with three optical phonon modes. Close to the charge ordering and ferromagnetic transition temperatures the specific heat curves showed peaks superposed to the characteristic response of the lattice oscillations. The entropy variation corresponding to the charge ordering transition was higher than the one corresponding to the ferromagnetic transition. The external magnetic field seems to have no effect in specific heat of the CO phase transition.