Crystal field effect and anisotropic magnetic interactions in RTBi$_2$ (R = Ce, Pr, Nd; T = Cu, Au)

In this work we have investigated the crystal field effect on the magnetic properties RTBi$_2$ (R = Ce, Pr, Nd; T = Cu, Au) intermetallic compounds. The samples were grown by the Bi metallic flux method. Macroscopic measurements of magnetic susceptibility, heat capacity and electrical resistivity were previously carried out, with supplementary measurements of Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction \cite{1,2,3,4}. A mean-field model that includes an anisotropic exchange interaction between nearest neighbors and tetragonal crystal field effects was used to fit the magnetic susceptibility and magnetization data. The best fits yield the crystal field parameters, level schemes and the values of the exchange constants for each compound in the RTBi$_2$ (R = Ce, Pr, Nd; T = Cu, Au) series. From these data analyzes, we have described how the crystal field effects and the competition between magnetic interactions govern the magnetic properties of these compounds.

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