6–10 Jul 2026
University of the Western Cape
Africa/Johannesburg timezone
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First principles study of the structural, electronic, and magnetic properties of the CeCuGe intermetallic compound

8 Jul 2026, 09:50
20m
Lecture Hall GH1 (University of the Western Cape)

Lecture Hall GH1

University of the Western Cape

Oral Presentation Track A - Physics of Condensed Matter and Materials Physics of Condensed Matter and Materials

Speaker

Prof. Buyisiwe Sondezi (University of Johannesburg)

Description

The ternary CeTX (T = d-electron transition metal and X = p-electron element) compounds exhibit a wide range of interesting phenomena depending on the degree of hybridization between the 4f electrons and the conduction electrons. A substantial experimental work has investigated the physical and transport properties of these compounds. The metallic behavior exhibited by these compounds acts as a strong stabilizer, giving rise to the Kondo effect, metal-insulator transitions, other phase transitions, and semiconducting behavior. A family of hexagonal intermetallic compounds, CeCuGe, CeAuGe, and CeCuSi, has previously been reported to exhibit a ferromagnetic ground state at Tc = 10 K, 10 K, and 15 K, respectively. Despite a fairly large number of studies on these compounds, there are limited theoretical investigations. In this study, we have calculated the structural, electronic, and vibrational properties of the CeCuGe compound using density functional theory to further elucidate its structural, stability, and magnetic properties. The magnetic calculations confirm that the compound exhibits ferromagnetic behavior and that Ce³⁺ ions are the only source of the compound's magnetism, as illustrated by the experimental work. Finally, the phonon calculations confirm that CeCuGe is dynamically stable.

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Author

Prof. Buyisiwe Sondezi (University of Johannesburg)

Co-author

Dr Mubarak Yagoub (University of Johannesburg)

Presentation materials

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