Electrical resistivity in amorphous SiLn (Ln: Nd, Sm, Gd) alloy powders prepared by mechanical alloying

Amorphous alloys Ln1−xSix (Ln: Nd, Sm, Gd) were prepared by means of mechanical alloying in the concentration range 0.33 < x < 0.66. The crystallization behavior was investigated by DTA and XRD. The crystalline phases were observed for Ln5Si3 and LnSi2, except for a SiSm system. The resistivity changes of the crystallized samples obtained by cooling to room temperature exhibited classical metallic behavior. Moreover, at 77–298 K transformation points were observed, lying at 111–116 K for a SiNd system, at 93–97 K for a SiSm system and at 132–138 K for a SiGd system.