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The tetragonal compound UPt2SI2 has been characterized as a moderately mass-enhanced system with an anti-ferromagnetic (AFM) ground state below TN = 32 K. Here, we present an extensive study of the behavior in high magnetic fields. We have performed pulsed field magnetization and static field resistivity measurements on single crystalline samples UPt2SI2. Along the crystallographic a axis, at low temperatures, we find a metamagnetic-like transition in fields of the order 40 T, possibly indicating a first-order transition. Along the crystallographic c axis, in magnetic fields of B ≥ 24 T, we find distinct anomalies in both properties. From our analysis of the data we can distinguish new high-field phases above the AFM ground state. We discuss the emergence of these new phases in the context of Fermi surface effects and the possible occurrence of a Lifshitz or electronic topological transition, this in contrast to previous modelings of UPt2SI2 based on crystal electric field effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present bulk magnetic and transport measurements and x-ray resonant scattering measurements on U(Pd1-xPtx)3 for x = 0.005 and 0.01, which demonstrate the high sensitivity of the quadrupolar order in the canonical antiferroquadrupolar ordered system UPd3 to doping with platinum. Bulk measurements for x = 0.005 reveal behavior similar to that seen in UPd3, albeit at a lower temperature, and x-ray resonant scattering provides evidence of quadrupolar order described by the Qxy order parameter. In contrast, bulk measurements reveal only an indistinct transition in x = 0.01, consistent with the observation of short-range quadrupolar order in our x-ray resonant scattering results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a detailed study of the field-dependent specific heat of the bimetallic ferromagnetically coupled chain compound MnNi(NO2)4(en)2, en = ethylenediamine. For this material, which in zero field orders antiferromagnetically below TN=2.45 K, small fields suppress magnetic order. Instead, in such fields, a double-peak-like structure in the temperature dependence of the specific heat is observed. We attribute this behavior to the existence of an acoustic and an optical mode in the spin-wave dispersion as a result of the existence of two different spins per unit cell. We compare our experimental data to numerical results for the specific heat obtained by exact diagonalization and Quantum Monte Carlo simulations for the alternating spin-chain model, using parameters that have been derived from the high-temperature behavior of the magnetic susceptibility. The interchain coupling is included in the numerical treatment at the mean-field level. We observe remarkable agreement between experiment and theory, including the ordering transition, using previously determined parameters. Furthermore, the observed strong effect of an applied magnetic field on the ordered state of MnNi(NO2)4(en)2 promises interesting magnetocaloric properties.

The duality between the localized and itinerant nature of magnetism in 5f-electron systems has been a long-standing puzzle. Here, we report inelastic neutron scattering measurements, which reveal both local and itinerant aspects of magnetism in a single-crystalline system of UPt_{2}Si_{2}. In the antiferromagnetic state, we observe a broad continuum of diffuse magnetic scattering with a resonancelike gap of ≈7  meV and the surprising absence of coherent spin waves, suggestive of itinerant magnetism. While the gap closes above the Néel temperature, strong dynamic spin correlations persist to a high temperature. Nevertheless, the size and temperature dependence of the total magnetic spectral weight can be well described by a local moment with J=4. Furthermore, polarized neutron measurements reveal that the magnetic fluctuations are mostly transverse, with little or none of the longitudinal component expected for itinerant moments. These results suggest that a dual description of local and itinerant magnetism is required to understand UPt_{2}Si_{2} and, by extension, other 5f systems, in general.

We present a combined experimental and theoretical study on copper pyrimidine dinitrate [CuPM(NO3)2(H2O)2]n, a one-dimensional S=1/2 antiferromagnet with alternating local symmetry. From the local susceptibility measured by NMR at the three inequivalent carbon sites in the pyrimidine molecule we deduce a giant spin canting, i.e., an additional staggered magnetization perpendicular to the applied external field at low temperatures. The magnitude of the transverse magnetization, the spin canting of (52+/-4) degrees at 10 K and 9.3 T, and its temperature dependence are in excellent agreement with exact diagonalization calculations.

We present a detailed study of the electronic transport properties on a single crystalline specimen of the moderately disordered heavy-fermion system URh2Ge2. For this material, we find glassy electronic transport in a single crystalline compound. We derive the temperature dependence of the electrical conductivity and establish metallicity by means of optical conductivity and Hall effect measurements. The overall behavior of the electronic transport properties closely resembles that of metallic glasses, with at low temperatures an additional minor spin disorder contribution. We argue that this glassy electronic behavior in a crystalline compound reflects the enhancement of disorder effects as a consequence of strong electronic correlations.