Spin-selective Kondo insulator: cooperation of ferromagnetism and the Kondo effect

We propose the notion of a spin-selective Kondo insulator, which provides a fundamental mechanism to describe the ferromagnetic phase of the Kondo lattice model with antiferromagnetic coupling. This unveils a remarkable feature of the ferromagnetic metallic phase: the majority-spin conduction electrons show metallic while the minority-spin electrons show insulating behavior. The resulting Kondo gap in the minority-spin sector, which is due to the cooperation of ferromagnetism and partial Kondo screening, evidences a dynamically induced commensurability for a combination of minority-spin electrons and parts of localized spins. Furthermore, this mechanism predicts a nontrivial relation between the macroscopic quantities such as electron magnetization, spin polarization, and electron filling.     

Itinerant ferromagnetism in the multiorbital Hubbard model: a dynamical mean-field study

In order to resolve the long-standing issue of how itinerant ferromagnetism is affected by lattice structure and Hund's coupling, we compare various three-dimensional lattice structures in the single- and multiorbital Hubbard models with the dynamical mean-field theory with an improved quantum Monte Carlo algorithm that preserves the spin-SU(2) symmetry. The result indicates that both the lattice structure and the d-orbital degeneracy are essential for the ferromagnetism in the parameter region representing a transition metal. Specifically, (a) Hund's coupling, despite the common belief, is important, which is here identified to come from particle-hole scatterings, and (b) the ferromagnetism is a correlation effect (outside the Stoner picture) as indicated from the band-filling dependence.     

Double-exchange ferromagnetism in the partially-filled one-dimensional Kondo lattice model

We investigate the incompletely saturated ferromagnetic phase which occurs at strong-coupling in the partially-filled one-dimensional (1D) Kondo lattice model. The double-exchange interaction responsible for the ferromagnetic ordering is absent in dilute Kondo systems, and is a missing element in nearly all theoretical treatments of the model. We discuss how: 1) double-exchange arises in the system, even though the Kondo coupling is antiferromagnetic, and show that at strong-coupling it favors an alignment of the spins of unpaired localized moments; and 2) how this determines the ground-state phase diagram, and properties of the localized moments.     

Optical study of interactions in a d-electron Kondo lattice with ferromagnetism

We report on a comprehensive optical, transport, and thermodynamic study of the Zintl compound Yb(14)MnSb(11), demonstrating that it is the first ferromagnetic Kondo lattice compound in the underscreened limit. We propose a scenario whereby the combination of Kondo and Jahn-Teller effects provides a consistent explanation of both transport and optical data.     

Spin glass and ferromagnetism in Kondo lattice compounds

The Kondo lattice model has been analyzed in the presence of a random inter-site interaction among localized spins with non zero mean J₀ and standard deviation J. Following the same framework previously introduced by us, the problem is formulated in the path integral formalism where the spin operators are expressed as bilinear combinations of Grassmann fields. The static approximation and the replica symmetry ansatz have allowed us to solve the problem at a mean field level. The resulting phase diagram displays several phase transitions among a ferromagnetically ordered region,a spin glass one, a mixed phase and a Kondo state depending on J₀, J and its relation with the Kondo interaction coupling J_K. These results could be used to address part of the experimental data for the CeNi _{1 - x} Cu _x compound, when x ⩽ 0.8. Received 24 June 2002 Published online 31 December 2002     

Magnetism and electrical transport in Kondo lattices

The Anderson lattice model is studied via time ordered perturbation theory in order to derive approximate results for dynamical susceptibility and electrical conductivity in the Kondo regime. A classification of processes on the lattice contributing to the susceptibility leads to expressions containing renormalized band Green's functions and local vertex parts. These quantities are determined by integral equations. Explicit results are obtained via a decoupling procedure for the local parts, which can be motivated in physical terms. It is shown that the formation of the Abrikosov-Suhl resonance near the Fermi level works against, and may actually suppress the tendency towards formation of a magnetic phase. Using a simple, but well founded form for the temperature dependent self energy of band electrons near the Fermi level the influence of coherence on the electrical conductivity at low temperatures can be demonstrated.Dedicated to B. Mühlschlegel on the occasion of the 60th birthday     

Spin order in one-dimensional Kondo and Hund lattices

We study numerically the one-dimensional Kondo and Hund lattices consisting of localized spins interacting antiferromagnetically or ferromagnetically with the itinerant electrons, respectively. Using the density-matrix renormalization group we find, for both models and in the small coupling regime, the existence of new magnetic phases where the local spins order forming ferromagnetic islands coupled antiferromagnetically. Furthermore, by increasing the interaction parameter |J| we find that this order evolves toward the ferromagnetic regime through a spiral-like phase with longer characteristic wavelengths. These results shed new light on the zero temperature magnetic phase diagram for these models.     

Some comments on Kondo lattices and the Mott transition

The so called exhaustion problem occurs when few electrons have to screen many spins in a metal with magnetic impurities. A singlet Fermi liquid ground state is possible only if all impurities are “isotropized” in such a way as to suppress their entropy. That takes a time and the corresponding energy limits the Fermi liquid range. The present note explores that issue of time and energy scales, and it concludes that is much smaller than the single impurity Kondo temperature. Similarly the relevant energy scale is proportional to the number of electrons. Recent results on the Mott metal insulator transition in infinite dimension are reconsidered in the light of these results: controversies in that respect are shown to reduce to a simple physical question, with no firm answer as to now. Received: 5 May 1998 / Received in final form and Accepted: 29 July 1998     

On the scaling theory of antiferromagnetic ordering in frustrated Kondo lattices

A scaling theory of the Kondo lattices with frustrated exchange interactions is developed, criterium of antiferromagnetic ordering being investigated. Depending on the bare model parameters, one or two quantum phase transitions into non-magnetic spin-liquid and Kondo Fermi-liquid ground states can occur with increasing the bare coupling constant. Whereas the renormalization of the magnetic moment in the ordered phase can reach orders of magnitude, spin fluctuation frequency and coupling constant are moderately renormalized in the spin-liquid phase. This justifies application of the scaling approach.     

Kondo insulators in the periodic Anderson model: a local moment approach

The symmetric periodic Anderson model is well known to capture the essential physics of Kondo insulator materials. Within the framework of dynamical mean-field theory, we develop a local moment approach to its single-particle dynamics in the paramagnetic phase. The approach is intrinsically non-perturbative, encompasses all energy scales and interaction strengths, and satisfies the low-energy dictates of Fermi liquid theory. It captures in particular the strong coupling behaviour and exponentially small quasiparticle scales characteristic of the Kondo lattice regime, as well as simple perturbative behaviour in weak coupling. Particular emphasis is naturally given to strong coupling dynamics, where the resultant clean separation of energy scales enables the scaling behaviour of single-particle spectra to be obtained. Received 19 December 2002 Published online 14 March 2003     

Kondo effect in the presence of itinerant-electron ferromagnetism studied with the numerical renormalization group method

The Kondo effect in quantum dots (QDs)-artificial magnetic impurities-attached to ferromagnetic leads is studied with the numerical renormalization group method. It is shown that the QD level is spin split due to the presence of ferromagnetic electrodes, leading to a suppression of the Kondo effect. We find that the Kondo effect can be restored by compensating this splitting with a magnetic field. Although the resulting Kondo resonance then has an unusual spin asymmetry with a reduced Kondo temperature, the ground state is still a locally screened state, describable by Fermi liquid theory and a generalized Friedel sum rule, and transport at zero temperature is spin independent.     

Contrasting magnetic behavior of fine particles of some Kondo lattices

We have investigated the magnetic behavior of ball-milled fine particles of well-known Kondo lattices, CeAu₂Si₂, CePd₂Si₂ and CeAl₂, by magnetization and heat-capacity studies in order to understand the magnetic behavior when the particle size is reduced. These compounds have been known to order antiferromagnetically in the bulk form near ($T_N=$) 10, 10 and 3.8 K respectively. We find that the features due to magnetic ordering get suppressed to temperatures below 1.8 K in the case of fine particles of ternary alloys, though trivalence of Ce as inferred from the effective moment remains unchanged. In contrast to this, in CeAl₂, there appears to be a marginal enhancement of $T_N$, when the particle size is reduced to less than a micron. These results can be consistently understood by proposing that these compounds move toward left in the Doniach magnetic phase-diagram, for instance, due to relatively more 4f-localization, as the particle size is reduced.