Abstract :
The thermal and magnetothermal properties of La0.5Pr0.5Mn2Si2 and isostructural LaFe2Si2 intermetallic compounds in the temperature range 4.5–303 K are reported with and without applied magnetic field. The electronic, lattice, and magnetic contributions to the heat capacity of La0.5Pr0.5Mn2Si2 are determined and analyzed. We have determined T C i n t e r and T N i n t e r from heat capacity experiments; the values are in line with those from the magnetization measurements. We conclude that in order to observe the anomaly in the heat capacity data around T N i n t e r in the R 1 − x R x ′ Mn 2 Si 2 system, the transition around T N i n t e r should occur in a narrow temperature interval.
