Quasi-quartet crystal electric field ground state in a tetragonal CeAg$_2$Ge$_2$ single crystal


Abstract in English

We have successfully grown the single crystals of CeAg$_2$Ge$_2$, for the first time, by flux method and studied the anisotropic physical properties by measuring the electrical resistivity, magnetic susceptibility and specific heat. We found that CeAg$_2$Ge$_2$ undergoes an antiferromagnetic transition at $T_{rm N}$ = 4.6 K. The electrical resistivity and susceptibility data reveal strong anisotropic magnetic properties. The magnetization measured at $T$ = 2 K exhibited two metamagnetic transitions at $H_{rm m1}$ = 31 kOe and $H_{rm m2}$ = 44.7 kOe, for $H parallel$ [100] with a saturation magnetization of 1.6 $mu_{rm B}$/Ce. The crystalline electric field (CEF) analysis of the inverse susceptibility data reveals that the ground state and the first excited states of CeAg$_2$Ge$_2$ are closely spaced indicating a quasi-quartet ground state. The specific heat data lend further support to the presence of closely spaced energy levels.

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