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Title: Non-Fermi liquid ground states in strongly correlated [ital f]-electron materials (invited) (abstract)

Journal Article · · Journal of Applied Physics; (United States)
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.358331· OSTI ID:6641909
 [1]
  1. Department of Physics and Institute for Pure and Applied Physical Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0319 (United States)

Strongly correlated electron materials, especially the high transition temperature ([ital T][sub [ital c]]) cuprate superconductors and heavy fermion rare earth and actinide compounds, have been the focus of intense investigation in recent years. The unusual normal state properties of the high [ital T][sub [ital c]] cuprates have been ascribed by some researchers to a non-Fermi liquid (NFL) metallic state, while the anomalous properties of certain heavy fermion U-based superconductors such as UBe[sub 13] have been attributed to NFL behavior due to a two-channel quadrupolar Kondo effect. Although NFL behavior has not been established in any of the U-based heavy fermion superconductors, evidence for its occurrence in an [ital f]-electron material has been found in the U alloy system Y[sub 1[minus][ital x]]U[sub [ital x]]Pd[sub 3]. Subsequently, NFL behavior was observed in a number of other [ital f]-electron alloy systems, including Sc[sub 1[minus][ital x]]U[sub [ital x]]Pd[sub 3], UCu[sub 3.5]Pd[sub 1.5], Th[sub 0.1]U[sub 0.9]Be[sub 13], Th[sub 1[minus][ital x]]U[sub [ital x]]Ru[sub 2]Si[sub 2] ([ital x][le]0.07), Th[sub 1[minus][ital x]]U[sub [ital x]]Pd[sub 2]Al[sub 3], La[sub 0.9]Ce[sub 0.1]Cu[sub 2]Si[sub 2], and CeCu[sub 5.9]Au[sub 0.1]. Evidence for NFL behavior in Y[sub 1[minus][ital x]]U[sub [ital x]]Pd[sub 3] and related systems is reviewed and discussed within the context of possible microscopic mechanisms. Some systematics of the NFL low temperature behavior observed in several [ital f]-electron materials include a linear temperature dependence of the electrical resistivity [rho][similar to]1[minus][ital aT] with the coefficient [ital a] either [gt]0 or [lt]0, a logarithmically diverging specific heat [ital C]/[ital T][similar to][minus]ln [ital T], and [ital T][sup 1/2] asymptotic behavior of the magnetic susceptibility [chi][similar to]1[minus][ital T][sup 1/2].

OSTI ID:
6641909
Journal Information:
Journal of Applied Physics; (United States), Vol. 76:10; ISSN 0021-8979
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English