Magnetic properties of PrRhSn: A single-crystal study

Abstract A PrRhSn single crystal has been grown and investigated with respect to magnetic behavior. The magnetization and specific heat were measured as functions of temperature (range 2–300 K) and magnetic field (range 0–9 T) applied along the main crystallographic axes. A strong uniaxial magnetocrystalline anisotropy was observed with the c -axis as the easy magnetization direction. The transition temperature from paramagnetic to ferromagnetic state was determined to be T c = 2.85 ( 3 ) K . The specific heat data exhibit a Schottky anomaly just above T c . The anomaly is lifted to higher temperatures with an applied magnetic field along the c -axis yielding a considerable magnetocaloric effect.