Magnetic and transport properties of Pr₂Pt₃Si ₅

We have investigated the magnetic and transport properties of a polycrystalline Pr₂Pt₃Si₅ sample through the dc and ac magnetic susceptibilities, electrical resistivity, and specific heat measurements. The Rietveld refinement of the powder X-ray diffraction data reveals that Pr₂Pt₃Si₅ crystallizes in the U₂Co₃Si₅-type orthorhombic structure (space group Ibam). Both the dc and ac magnetic susceptibility data measured at low fields exhibit sharp anomaly near 15 K. In contrast, the specific heat data exhibit only a broad anomaly implying no long range magnetic order down to 2 K. The broad Schottky-type anomaly in low temperature specific heat data is interpreted in terms of crystal electric field (CEF) effect, and a CEF-split singlet ground state is inferred. The absence of the long range order is attributed to the presence of nonmagnetic singlet ground state of the Pr ³ ion. The electrical resistivity data exhibit metallic behavior and are well described by the Bloch-Grüniesen-Mott relation.