Study of the magnetic properties of the La1-xGdxTe solid solution

Article abstract of DOI:10.1016/S0304-8853(96)00029-7

We present a study of the physical properties of the La_1-xGd_xTe solid solution. Although both LaTe and GdTe crystallize in the fcc structure and are metallic, two domains in the x-dependence of the lattice parameters of their solid solution can be distinguished. At the critical concentration, no anomalies in the magnetic susceptibility or the electrical resistivity can be detected. Both the Neel and paramagnetic Curie temperatures are linearly x-dependent, at xGREQ0.5, with opposite slopes. The results are discussed within a molecular field treatment of the RKKY exchange interaction in which the disorder generated by spin dilution is averaged out.