We have discovered a new family of rare earth compounds that we identify as Rz-xPt4Ga8 + y. Single crystals of this family have been grown for R-=La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Gd, Er, Yb and Y. Many members (cerium, praseodymium, neodymium, samarium and erbium) show large anisotropies in their magnetic susceptibility; further, electrical resistance, magnetic susceptibility and specific heat measurements on the cerium member indicate that it is very possibly a heavy-electron compound with an electronic specific heat T= 1 J K -2 mol -~. Additionally, other members of the family have a magnetic transition at low temperatures. The electrical resistance, magnetic susceptibility and specific heat in fields will be presented for the praseodymium-based compound in which there is a field-induced transition.
The structure of the (-phase in the Pu-U system has been determined by neutron powder diffraction. The phase crystallizes in space group R3m with 58 atoms in the primitive unit cell and 10 atoms in the asymmetric unit. The structure is characterized by many short bonds and fits the general pattern of the light actinides. Thermal expansion and elastic data were obtained from the diffraction experiments.
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