Spin-reorientation in YbFeO₃

Precise measurements of YbFeO_3 magnetization in the spin-reoirentation temperature interval are performed. It is shown that ytterbium orthoferrite is well described by a recently developed modified mean field theory developed for ErFeO_3. This validates the conjecture about the essential influence of the rare earth ion's anisotropic paramagnetism on the magnetization behavior in the reorientation regions of all orthoferrites with Gamma{4} -> Gamma{24} -> Gamma{2} phase transitions.