ABSTRACT
We established the basic electronic properties of ζ-Pu19Os, which is a close analogue to ß-Pu, and its low-temperature variety, η-Pu19Os. Their magnetic susceptibility is 15% higher than for δ-Pu. A specific heat study of ζ-Pu19Os shows a soft lattice similar to δ-Pu, leading to a low Debye temperature Θ D = 101 K. The linear electronic coefficient γ related to the quasiparticle density of states at the Fermi level points to a higher value, 55 ± 2 mJ (mol Pu K2)-1, compared to 40 mJ (mol K2)-1 for δ-Pu. The results confirm that ß-Pu is probably the most strongly correlated Pu phase, as had been indicated by resistivity measurements. The volume and related Pu-Pu spacing is clearly not the primary tuning parameter for Pu metal, as the ß-Pu density stands close to the ground-state α-phase and is much higher than that for δ-Pu. The η-Pu19Os phase has a record γ-value of 74 ± 2 mJ (mol Pu K2)-1. The enhancement is not reproduced by LDA+DMFT calculations in the fcc structure, which suggests that multiple diverse sites can be the key to the understanding of ß-Pu.
ABSTRACT
We address a recent controversy concerning the magnetic state of holmium adatom on platinum surface. Within a combination of the density functional theory (DFT) with the exact diagonalization (ED) of Anderson impurity model, the ãJ z ã = 0 paramagnetic ground state |J = 8, J z = ±8ã is found. In an external magnetic field, this state is transformed to a spin-polarized state with ãJ z ã ≈ 6.7. We emphasize the role of 5d-4f interorbital exchange polarization in modification of the 4f shell energy spectrum.
ABSTRACT
The recently proposed concept of a Hund's metal--a metal in which electron correlations are driven by Hund's rule coupling-can be used to explain the exotic magnetic and electronic behaviour of strongly correlated electron systems of multi-orbital metallic materials. Tuning the abundance of parameters that determine these materials is, however, experimentally challenging. Here, we show that the basic constituent of a Hund's metal--a Hund's impurity--can be realized using a single iron atom adsorbed on a platinum surface, a system that comprises a magnetic moment in the presence of strong charge fluctuations. The magnetic properties can be controlled by using the tip of a scanning tunnelling microscope to change the binding site and degree of hydrogenation of the 3d transition-metal atom. We are able to experimentally explore a regime of four almost degenerate energy scales (Zeeman energy, temperature, Kondo temperature and magnetic anisotropy) and probe the magnetic excitations with the microscope tip. The regime of our Hund's impurity can be tuned from an emergent magnetic moment to a multi-orbital Kondo state, and the system could be used to test predictions of advanced many-body theories for non-Fermi liquids in quantum magnets or unconventional superconductors.
ABSTRACT
Superconductivity is due to an attractive interaction between electrons that, below a critical temperature, drives them to form Cooper pairs and to condense into a ground state separated by an energy gap from the unpaired states. In the simplest cases, the pairing is mediated by lattice vibrations and the wavefunction of the pairs is isotropic. Less conventional pairing mechanisms can favour more exotic symmetries of the Cooper pairs. Here, we report on point-contact spectroscopy measurements in PuCoGa(5), a moderate heavy-fermion superconductor with a record high critical temperature T(c)=18.5 K. The results prove that the wavefunction of the paired electrons has a d-wave symmetry, with four lobes and nodes, and show that the pairing is likely to be mediated by spin fluctuations. Electronic structure calculations, which take into account the full structure of the f-orbital multiplets of Pu, provide a hint of the possible origin of these fluctuations.
