Magnetic properties of CeMn2-xCoxGe4O12 (0 ≤ x ≤ 2) as a function of temperature and magnetic field

Polycrystalline samples, prepared by a solid-state route, of compositions in the solid solution CeMn2-xCoxGe4O12 (x = 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0) were characterized by X-ray diffraction, neutron diffraction, and magnetometry. They adopt space group P4/nbm with a ≈ 9.78 and c ≈ 4.85 Å and become anti-ferromagnetic (x = 0.0, 1.5, 2.0) or weakly ferromagnetic (x = 0.5, 1.0) at 4.2 ≤ T ≤ 7.6 K. The ordered moments lie along [001] when x = 0.0 and in the (001) plane otherwise. The unit cell doubles along [001] when x = 1.5 and 2.0 order anti-ferromagnetically, but the doubling is lost when a first-order metamagnetic transition to weak ferromagnetism occurs on the application of a 10 kOe magnetic field. The ordered moments at 1.6 K for x = 0.0 and 2.0 are 4.61(2) and 2.58(2) μB, respectively; the corresponding effective moments in the paramagnetic phase are 5.91 and 5.36 μB