Kondo screening coexisting with ferromagnetic order as a possible ground state for Kondo lattice systems

Abstract

We consider the competition between the Kondo screening effect and ferromagnetic long-range order (FLRO) within a mean-field theory of the Kondo lattice model for low conduction electron densities $n_{c}$. Depending on the parameter values, several types of FLRO ground states are found. When $n_{c}<0.16$, a polarized FLRO phase is dominant. For $0.16<n_{c}<0.82$, a non-polarized FLRO phase appears in the weak Kondo coupling region; while in the intermediate coupling region the ground state corresponds to the polarized and non-polarized FLRO phases, respectively, coexisting with the Kondo screening. For a strong Kondo coupling, the product of pure Kondo singlets is the ground state. Moreover, we also find that a weak magnetic field makes the pure Kondo singlet phase vanish, while the non-polarized FLRO state with the Kondo screening spans a large area in the phase diagram.