  The compound EuCo{2-y}As2 with the tetragonal ThCr2Si2 structure is known to
contain Eu{+2} ions with spin S = 7/2 that order below a temperature TN = 47 K
into an antiferromagnetic (AFM) proper helical structure with the ordered
moments aligned in the tetragonal ab plane, perpendicular to the helix axis
along the c axis, with no contribution from the Co atoms. Here we carry out a
detailed investigation of the properties of single crystals. Enhanced ordered
and effective moments of the Eu spins are found in most of our crystals.
Electronic structure calculations indicate that the enhanced moments arise from
polarization of the d bands, as occurs in ferromagnetic Gd metal. Electrical
resistivity measurements indicate metallic behavior. The low-field in-plane
magnetic susceptibilities chi{ab}(T < TN) for several crystals are reported
that are fitted well by unified molecular field theory (MFT), and the Eu-Eu
exchange interactions Jij are extracted from the fits. High-field magnetization
M data for magnetic fields H||ab reveal what appears to be a first-order
spin-flop transition followed at higher field by a second-order metamagnetic
transition of unknown origin, and then by another second-order transition to
the paramagnetic (PM) state. For H||c, the magnetization shows only a
second-order transition from the canted AFM to the PM state, as expected. The
critical fields for the AFM to PM transition are in approximate agreement with
the predictions of MFT. Heat capacity Cp measurements in zero and high H are
reported. Phase diagrams for H||c and H||ab versus T are constructed from the
high-field M(H,T) and Cp(H,T) measurements. The magnetic part Cmag(T, H = 0) of
Cp(T, H = 0) is extracted and is fitted rather well below TN by MFT, although
dynamic short-range AFM order is apparent in Cmag(T) up to about 70 K, where
the molar entropy attains its high-T limit of R ln8.
