Geometric frustration in Rare Earth antiferromagnetic compounds

An overview is given of the magnetic phases that emerge or could be expected from the geometric frustration of antiferromagnetic interactions, without strictly adhering to the compounds containing a Rare Earth element. An emphasis is put on the actively searched spin liquid or topological glassy phases and on the mixed phases, characterised by the co-existence of magnetic and non magnetic of otherwise crystallographically equivalent atomic centres, discovered in itinerant antiferromagnets and found out recently to set up also in Kondo lattice compounds and in non Kramers ion based compounds. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science S.A.