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We investigated the crystal-electric field ground state of the 4f manifold in the strongly correlated topological insulator SmB6 using core-level nonresonant inelastic x-ray scattering. The directional dependence of the scattering function that arises from higher multipole transitions establishes unambiguously that the Γ8 quartet state of the Sm f5 J=5/2 configuration governs the ground-state symmetry and, hence, the topological properties of SmB6. Our findings contradict the results of density functional calculations reported so far. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CeIrSn with a quasikagome Ce lattice in the hexagonal basal plane is a strongly valence fluctuating compound, as we confirm by hard x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and inelastic neutron scattering, with a high Kondo temperature of TK~480 K. We report a negative in-plane thermal expansion α/T below 2 K, which passes through a broad minimum near 0.75 K. Volume and a-axis magnetostriction for B∥a are markedly negative at low fields and change sign before a sharp metamagnetic anomaly at 6 T. These behaviors are unexpected for Ce-based intermediate valence systems, which should feature positive expansivity. Rather they point towards antiferromagnetic correlations at very low temperatures. This is supported by muon spin relaxation measurements down to 0.1 K, which provide microscopic evidence for a broad distribution of internal magnetic fields. Comparison with isostructural CeRhSn suggests that these antiferromagnetic correlations emerging at T≪TK result from geometrical frustration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present linear polarization-dependent soft-x-ray absorption spectroscopy data at the Ce M4, 5 edges of Cd- and Sn-doped CeCoIn5. The 4f ground-state wave functions have been determined for their superconducting, antiferromagnetic, and paramagnetic ground states. The absence of changes in the wave functions in CeCo In1-x Cdx) 5 suggests that the 4f-conduction-electron (cf) hybridization is not affected by global Cd doping, thus supporting the interpretation of magnetic droplets nucleating long-range magnetic order. This is contrasted by changes in the wave function due to Sn substitution. Increasing Sn in CeCo ( In1-y Sny)5 compresses the 4f orbitals into the tetragonal plane of these materials, suggesting enhanced cf hybridization with the in-plane In(1) atoms and a homogeneous altering of the electronic structure. As these experiments show, the 4f wave functions are a very sensitive probe of small changes in the hybridization of 4f and conduction electrons, even conveying information about direction dependencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The crystal-field ground-state wave functions of the tetragonal, magnetically ordering Kondo lattice materials CeMAl4Si2 (M=Rh, Ir, and Pt) are determined with low-temperature linearly polarized soft-x-ray absorption spectroscopy, and estimates for the crystal-field splittings are given from the temperature evolution of the linear dichroism. Values for the dominant exchange field in the magnetically ordered phases can be obtained from fitting the influence of magnetic order on the linear dichroism. The direction of the required exchange field is ∥c for the antiferromagnetic Rh and Ir compounds, with the corresponding strength of the order of λex≈6meV (65 K). Furthermore, the presence of Kondo screening in the Rh and Ir compound is demonstrated on the basis of the absorption due to f0 in the initial state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CeRh_{2}As_{2} is a new multiphase superconductor with strong suggestions for an additional itinerant multipolar ordered phase. The modeling of the low-temperature properties of this heavy-fermion compound requires a quartet Ce^{3+} crystal-field ground state. Here, we provide the evidence for the formation of such a quartet state using x-ray spectroscopy. Core-level photoelectron and x-ray absorption spectroscopy confirm the presence of Kondo hybridization in CeRh_{2}As_{2}. The temperature dependence of the linear dichroism unambiguously reveals the impact of Kondo physics for coupling the Kramer's doublets into an effective quasiquartet. Nonresonant inelastic x-ray scattering data find that the |Γ_{7}^{-}⟩ state with its lobes along the 110 direction of the tetragonal structure (xy orientation) contributes most to the multiorbital ground state of CeRh_{2}As_{2}.

We investigated the crystal-electric field ground state of the 4f manifold in the strongly correlated topological insulator SmB_{6} using core-level nonresonant inelastic x-ray scattering. The directional dependence of the scattering function that arises from higher multipole transitions establishes unambiguously that the Γ_{8} quartet state of the Sm f^{5}  J=5/2 configuration governs the ground-state symmetry and, hence, the topological properties of SmB_{6}. Our findings contradict the results of density functional calculations reported so far.