Magnetic Order and Heavy Fermion Behavior in CePd1+xAl6-x: Synthesis, Structure, and Physical Properties.

The physical properties including magnetic susceptibility, specific heat, and electrical resistivity of single crystals are reported for the compound CePd{sub 1+x}Al{sub 6-x} (x=0.5) which crystallizes in the tetragonal SrAu{sub 2}Ga{sub 5}-type structure (space group P4/mmm). The compound was grown from an excess of molten Al flux from the respective elements and the crystal structure was established from single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Anomalies in the low temperature specific heat C{sub p}(T) and electrical resistivity rho(T) show that the compound undergoes ferromagnetic order at T{sub C}=2.8 K. In the ordered state, CePd{sub 1.5}Al{sub 5.5} displays heavy fermion behavior with a Sommerfeld coefficient of ca. 500 mJ/mol-K{sup 2}. - Graphical abstract: The compound CePd{sub 1+x}Al{sub 6-x} (x=0.5) has been synthesized and structurally characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The measured physical properties of temperature and field dependent magnetic susceptibility, specific heat, and electrical resistivity suggests that the compound undergoes ferromagnetic order at ca. 2.8 K and further exhibits relatively heavy fermion behavior with a Sommerfeld coefficient of 500 mJ/mol-K2.