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Quantum phase transition in the heavy-fermion compound YbIr2Si2

H. Q. Yuan, M. Nicklas, Z. Hossain, C. Geibel, F. Steglich

cond-mat.str-elarXiv:cond-mat/0610126

Abstract

We investigate the pressure-temperature phase diagram of YbIr2Si2 by measuring the electrical resistivity ρ(T). In contrast to the widely investigated YbRh2Si2, YbIr2Si2 is a paramagnetic metal below pc 8 GPa. Interestingly, a first-order, presumably ferromagnetic, transition develops at pc. Similar magnetic properties were also observed in YbRh2Si2 and YbCu2Si2 at sufficiently high pressures, suggesting a uniform picture for these Yb compounds. The ground state of YbIr2Si2 under pressure can be described by Landau Fermi-liquid (LFL) theory, in agreement with the nearly ferromagnetic Fermi-liquid (NFFL) model. Moreover, evidence of a weak valence transition, characterized by a jump of the Kadowaki-Woods (KW) ratio as well as an enhancement of the residual resistivity ρ0 and of the quasiparticle-quasiparticle scattering cross section, is observed around 6 GPa.

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