Cluster glass transition in the ternary Dy2AgIn3 system determined by neutron diffraction and Ac–Dc magnetization measurements

Abstract The crystallographic and magnetic properties of the polycrystalline intermetallic compound D y 2 A g I n 3 are presented. The compound crystallizes in the hexagonal CaI n 2 - type structure (space group P 6 3 / m m c ). The magnetic susceptibility data reveals a Curie–Weiss (CW) law behavior above 120 K , with a calculated effective magnetic moment μ eff = 10.63 ± 0.29 μ B / D y 3 + and a Curie paramagnetic temperature θ p = 17.5 K ± 0.5 K , demonstrating the dominance of ferromagnetic (FM) couplings in the sample. In the temperature range of 60 - 120 K it exhibits a Griffith’s phase like behavior. The dc field cooled (FC) and zero field cooled (ZFC) susceptibility, show field dependent irreversible phenomena below T r ~ 43 K , and the ZFC plots present a cusp glass like maxima at 31 K . The irreversibility temperature T r adopts a H 2 / 3 , field dependence of de Almeida–Thouless type line which defines the stability limits in the H-T plane with T r ( 0 ) = 44.5 ± 0.5 K . The ac susceptibility data shows a relative shift in freezing temperature δ T f ~ 0.048 ± 0.004 , while near the freezing temperature it exhibits a Power- Vogel-Fulcher law dependency characterized by the dynamic exponents z ν = 7.4 , single flip time τ 0 = 10 - 6 s and T g = 24.5 ± 0.65 K . These values suggest the formation of cluster spin-glass states (CSG). At low angles the neutron diffraction (ND) profiles display diffuse scattering of antiferromagnetic (AFM) origin which is triggered by the ~ 5 n m - magnetic spin clusters.