Crystal growth and properties of Ln2Ag1−xGa10−y (Ln=La, Ce), a disordered variant of the Ce2NiGa10-structure type

We report the flux growth and characterization of Ln2Ag1−xGa10−y (Ln=La, Ce), a disordered variant of the Ce2NiGa10 structure type. Single crystals of La2Ag1−xGa10−y (x∼0.3; y∼0.6) and Ce2Ag1−xGa10−y (x∼0.3; y∼0.9) were grown by the self-flux method and characterized using single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Transport measurements of Ce2Ag1−xGa10−y (x∼0.3; y∼0.9) reveal metallic behavior with a transition at 3 K. Magnetic measurements indicate antiferromagnetic ordering at 3 K of localized Ce3+ moments for Ce2Ag1−xGa10−y. Magnetoresistance is positive with a maximum value of 16% at 9 T. La2Ag1−xGa10−y exhibits metallic behavior with magnetic susceptibility showing temperature independent paramagnetism. We will compare Ce2Ag1−xGa10−y (x∼0.3; y∼0.9) to Ce2NiGa10 to examine the effects of transition metal substitution and to the related Ce(Ag,Ga)4 phase to examine the effects of crystal structure on the physical properties.