MAGNETIC-PROPERTIES OF THE DENSE KONDO COMPOUND YBNISN

Specific heat measurements revealed that YbNiSn is a dense Kondo compound with a large electronic specific heat coefficient-gamma of 300 mJ/mol k2. This compound orders magnetically at 5.5 K, below which the ferromagnetic moment appears along the c-axis. The magnetization along the a-axis vs external magnetic field H curve shows three anomalies at H(C1), H(C2) and H(C3), whereas the magnetization along the b-axis increases gradually from zero without anomalies. These results suggest that YbNiSn is the weak ferromagnet with the ferromagnetic moment along the c-axis, which is caused by the canting of antiferromagnetic sublattice within the ac-plane. The magnetic field dependences of the electrical resistivity of YbNiSn are strongly correlated with the magnetizations.