High-resolution magnetic x-ray diffraction from neodymium

High-resolution studies of antiferromagnetic ordering have been made on the rare-earth metal neodymium, using resonant magnetic diffraction at x-ray energies near the ${\mathit{L}}_{\mathrm{II}}$ and ${\mathit{L}}_{\mathrm{III}}$ absorption edges. A single domain of the double-q magnetic structure has been observed directly in zero magnetic field. Detailed measurements of the temperature dependence of the modulation vector over the temperature range 11.5–20 K showed no sign of any lock-in to commensurate values. The ordering was found to be double q over a wider temperature range than previous measurements would indicate. © 1996 The American Physical Society.