Critical behavior study of NdScSi, NdScGe intermetallic compounds.

A complete critical behavior study of the paramagnetic to ferromagnetic transition in intermetallics NdScSi and NdScGe has been carried out by means of magnetic as well as calorimetric measurements. The critical exponents α , β , γ and δ have been independently obtained. For NdScSi they are α = −0.015, β = 0.339, γ = 1.297 and δ = 4.94, indicating that it belongs to the 3D-XY universality class, while for NdScGe they are close to the mean field model with α tending to zero, β = 0.446, γ = 1.146 and δ = 3.44. The change from short-range to long-range ordering is discussed in terms of the magnetism mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]