Chemical pressure in SmNiC(2-x)B(x) compounds: evidence of a quantum critical behavior

We studied the effect of carbon substituted by boron on polycrystalline samples of SmNiC(2) in the B content range 0 ⩽ x ⩽ 0.200. The structural parameters were determined from x-ray measurements by Rietveld analysis. The structural analysis shows that the cell volume increases as the B content increases indicating that the substitution produces an internal pressure. The samples were studied by resistance as a function of temperature from room temperature down to 2 K. The transition temperature of the charge density wave, TCDW = 148 K, decreases with an increment of B until the transition vanishes in the resistance measurements. At the same time, the ferromagnetic transition temperature changes showing a tiny dome with the B content, with a maximum transition temperature of ∼ 23.1 K. In addition, the resistance behaviour above the charge density wave is linear in temperature and this behaviour persists until the charge density wave disappears, suggesting that the system is a non-Fermi liquid. The resulting temperature--boron content phase--diagram indicates a quantum critical behaviour.