Magnetic, electrical transport, and thermal properties of a uranium intermetallic compound UCu5In

A ternary intermetallic compound UCu₅In has been studied by means of magnetization, electrical resistivity, magnetoresistivity, thermopower, thermal conductivity, heat-capacity, and thermal-expansion measurements. The experimental findings reveal UCu₅In to be antiferromagnetically ordered (T_N=25 K) dense Kondo system (T_K=24 K) with a considerable enhancement of the effective mass of conduction electrons at low temperatures, yielding the Sommerfeld coefficient γ(0) of about 240 mJ/(mole K²). Although the electrical resistivity and the thermopower of UCu₅In shows features characteristic of interplay of Kondo and crystal-field effects, the magnetoresistivity does not exhibit behavior expected for Kondo systems being large and positive even well above T_N. Consistent explanation of the latter results is attempted by considering the role of magnetic precursor effects and/or interfacelike effects due to the presence of nonmagnetic layers.