Low temperature irreversible field induced magnetic transition in

Abstract: The origin of anomalous thermomagnetic irreversibility in rare earth germanide has been addressed. Open hysteresis observed in magnetoresistance (MR) at low temperature is shown to decrease with increasing temperature which correlates with the corresponding isothermal magnetostriction (MS) measurements. These thermomagnetic irreversibilities are interpreted in terms of kinetic arrest of magnetic field induced first order transition. The minor loop study of isothermal MS suggests that open loop in MS and MR is associated with large magnetostriction across metamagnetic transitions. The magnetoresistance associated with the second metamagnetic transition at higher field is reversible where magnetostriction variation with field is negligible. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]