Electrical resistivity and magnetization measurements on the heavy fermion superconductor PrOs4Sb12

Abstract

The filled skutterudite compound PrOs4Sb12, the first example of a Pr-based heavy fermion superconductor, displays superconductivity with $T_c\sim 1.85$ K and has an effective mass $m^* \sim$ {50 $m_e$}, where $m_e$ is the free electron mass. For magnetic fields above 4.5 T, sharp features in the normal state electrical resistivity, magnetization, specific heat, and thermal expansion data suggest the occurrence of a phase transition at high fields. This high field ordered phase in the normal state may originate from a combination of crystalline electric field enhanced Zeeman splitting and quadrupolar ordering. We present an investigation of the electrical resistivity and magnetization of PrOs4Sb12 as a function of temperature between {350 mK} and {3.5 K} and magnetic field up to {18 T}. The data reveal a detailed phase boundary of the high field ordered phase as well as the lower critical field $H_{c1}$ and the onset field of the peak effect in the superconducting state of PrOs4Sb12.

10 pages, 5 figures, currently submitted to PRB:Rapid Communication