Low-temperature magnetic properties of the monoclinic magnet RbDy(WO4)2

The temperature dependence of the magnetic susceptibility along the principal magnetic axes of rubidium-dysprosium tungstate RbDy(WO4)(2) is measured in the temperature interval 0.5-300 K. Strong anisotropy of the susceptibility is observed at all temperatures in that range. At T-N=0.8 K the susceptibility along all three magnetic axes exhibits a sharp anomaly due to the phase transition to a magnetically ordered state. At 0.5 K the measured field dependence of the magnetization along all three axes demonstrates a metamagnetic orientational phase transition in the directions of the magnetic axes y and z. Another type of anomaly of the magnetic susceptibility is observed at temperatures of around 5, 8, and 50 K. Analysis shows that these anomalies correspond to structural phase transitions in this compound. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.