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Title: Hall Anomaly, Quantum Oscillations and Possible Lifshitz Transitions in Kondo Insulator YbB 12 : Evidence for Unconventional Charge Transport

Abstract

In correlated electronic systems, strong interactions and the interplay between different degrees of freedom may give rise to anomalous charge-transport properties, which can be tuned by external parameters like temperature and magnetic field. Recently, magnetic quantum oscillations and metallic low- temperature thermal conductivity have been observed in the Kondo insulator YbB12, whose resistivity is a few orders of magnitude higher than those of conventional metals. As yet, these unusual observations are not fully understood. Here we present a detailed investigation of the behavior of YbB12 under intense magnetic fields using both transport and torque magnetometry measurements. The Hall resistivity displays a strongly nonlinear field dependence which cannot be described using a standard two-band Drude model. A low-field Hall anomaly, reminiscent of the Hall response associated with “strange-metal” physics, develops at T < 1.5 K. At two characteristic magnetic fields (μ0H1 1/4 19.6 T and μ0H2 ~ 31 T), signatures appear in the Hall coefficient, magnetic torque, and magnetoresistance; the latter characteristic field coincides with the occurrence of a change in quantum-oscillation frequency. We suggest that they are likely to be field-induced Lifshitz transitions. Moreover, above 35 T, where the most pronounced quantum oscillations are detected, the background resistivity displays anmore » unusual, nonmetallic Tα behavior, with α being field dependent and varying between -1.5 and -2 By normalizing the Shubnikov–de Haas oscillation amplitude to this Tα dependence, the calculated cyclotron mass becomes more consistent with that deduced from de Haas–van Alphen oscillations. Our results support a novel two-fluid scenario in YbB12: A Fermi-liquid-like fluid of charge-neutral quasiparticles coexists with charge carriers that remain in a nonmetallic state. The former experience successive Lifshitz transitions and develop Landau quantization in applied magnetic fields, while scattering between both fluids allows the Shubnikov–de Haas effect to be observed in the electrical transport. The verification of this two-fluid scenario by the data in the current work strongly suggests that YbB12 represents a new phase of matter.« less

Authors:
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Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Materials Sciences & Engineering Division; National Science Foundation (NSF); US Department of the Navy, Office of Naval Research (ONR); JST CREST
OSTI Identifier:
1870932
Alternate Identifier(s):
OSTI ID: 1870828; OSTI ID: 1870833; OSTI ID: 1974930
Report Number(s):
LA-UR-22-20370
Journal ID: ISSN 2160-3308; PRXHAE; 021050
Grant/Contract Number:  
SC0020184; 89233218CNA000001; DMR-1707620; DMR-2004288; DMR-1644779; N00014-17-1-2357; JP18H05227; JPMJCR19T5; GBMF5305
Resource Type:
Published Article
Journal Name:
Physical Review. X
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Name: Physical Review. X Journal Volume: 12 Journal Issue: 2; Journal ID: ISSN 2160-3308
Publisher:
American Physical Society
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY; Kondo insulator; quantum oscillations; strongly correlated materials

Citation Formats

Xiang, Ziji, Chen, Kuan-Wen, Chen, Lu, Asaba, Tomoya, Sato, Yuki, Zhang, Nan, Zhang, Dechen, Kasahara, Yuichi, Iga, Fumitoshi, Coniglio, William A., Matsuda, Yuji, Singleton, John, and Li, Lu. Hall Anomaly, Quantum Oscillations and Possible Lifshitz Transitions in Kondo Insulator YbB 12 : Evidence for Unconventional Charge Transport. United States: N. p., 2022. Web. doi:10.1103/PhysRevX.12.021050.
Xiang, Ziji, Chen, Kuan-Wen, Chen, Lu, Asaba, Tomoya, Sato, Yuki, Zhang, Nan, Zhang, Dechen, Kasahara, Yuichi, Iga, Fumitoshi, Coniglio, William A., Matsuda, Yuji, Singleton, John, & Li, Lu. Hall Anomaly, Quantum Oscillations and Possible Lifshitz Transitions in Kondo Insulator YbB 12 : Evidence for Unconventional Charge Transport. United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.12.021050
Xiang, Ziji, Chen, Kuan-Wen, Chen, Lu, Asaba, Tomoya, Sato, Yuki, Zhang, Nan, Zhang, Dechen, Kasahara, Yuichi, Iga, Fumitoshi, Coniglio, William A., Matsuda, Yuji, Singleton, John, and Li, Lu. Thu . "Hall Anomaly, Quantum Oscillations and Possible Lifshitz Transitions in Kondo Insulator YbB 12 : Evidence for Unconventional Charge Transport". United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.12.021050.
@article{osti_1870932,
title = {Hall Anomaly, Quantum Oscillations and Possible Lifshitz Transitions in Kondo Insulator YbB 12 : Evidence for Unconventional Charge Transport},
author = {Xiang, Ziji and Chen, Kuan-Wen and Chen, Lu and Asaba, Tomoya and Sato, Yuki and Zhang, Nan and Zhang, Dechen and Kasahara, Yuichi and Iga, Fumitoshi and Coniglio, William A. and Matsuda, Yuji and Singleton, John and Li, Lu},
abstractNote = {In correlated electronic systems, strong interactions and the interplay between different degrees of freedom may give rise to anomalous charge-transport properties, which can be tuned by external parameters like temperature and magnetic field. Recently, magnetic quantum oscillations and metallic low- temperature thermal conductivity have been observed in the Kondo insulator YbB12, whose resistivity is a few orders of magnitude higher than those of conventional metals. As yet, these unusual observations are not fully understood. Here we present a detailed investigation of the behavior of YbB12 under intense magnetic fields using both transport and torque magnetometry measurements. The Hall resistivity displays a strongly nonlinear field dependence which cannot be described using a standard two-band Drude model. A low-field Hall anomaly, reminiscent of the Hall response associated with “strange-metal” physics, develops at T < 1.5 K. At two characteristic magnetic fields (μ0H1 1/4 19.6 T and μ0H2 ~ 31 T), signatures appear in the Hall coefficient, magnetic torque, and magnetoresistance; the latter characteristic field coincides with the occurrence of a change in quantum-oscillation frequency. We suggest that they are likely to be field-induced Lifshitz transitions. Moreover, above 35 T, where the most pronounced quantum oscillations are detected, the background resistivity displays an unusual, nonmetallic Tα behavior, with α being field dependent and varying between -1.5 and -2 By normalizing the Shubnikov–de Haas oscillation amplitude to this Tα dependence, the calculated cyclotron mass becomes more consistent with that deduced from de Haas–van Alphen oscillations. Our results support a novel two-fluid scenario in YbB12: A Fermi-liquid-like fluid of charge-neutral quasiparticles coexists with charge carriers that remain in a nonmetallic state. The former experience successive Lifshitz transitions and develop Landau quantization in applied magnetic fields, while scattering between both fluids allows the Shubnikov–de Haas effect to be observed in the electrical transport. The verification of this two-fluid scenario by the data in the current work strongly suggests that YbB12 represents a new phase of matter.},
doi = {10.1103/PhysRevX.12.021050},
journal = {Physical Review. X},
number = 2,
volume = 12,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Jun 02 00:00:00 EDT 2022},
month = {Thu Jun 02 00:00:00 EDT 2022}
}

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