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Abstract |
The fcc-Ce3In compound is presented as the best available approximation to reproduce the main magnetic properties of gamma-Ce at low temperatures, where such a pure phase does not exist. The electronic specific heat shows a maximum at 18 K and an anomaly at 2.2 K, with an entropy gain of 0.8R ln 4 at 32 K. The susceptibility shows a broad maximum at 1.8 K, while in the magnetization there is no trace of ordering up to 18 T at 1.5 and 4.2 K. We interpret the experimental results as governed by a quadruplet crystal field ground state, which undergoes a quadrupolar transition at 18 K. At lower temperatures a heavy-fermion ground state develops, with C(el)/T = 500 mJ/Ce at. K2 for T --> 0 and CHI-T/C(el) = 0.11 emu K/J for T < 5 K. |
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