Application of the S=1 underscreened Anderson lattice model to Kondo uranium and neptunium compounds

TL;DR

This paper models the magnetic properties of uranium and neptunium compounds using an S=1 underscreened Anderson lattice model, capturing coexistence of Kondo screening and ferromagnetic order, and analyzing pressure effects on Curie temperature.

Contribution

It introduces a derivation of an effective Kondo lattice Hamiltonian for S=1 spins, incorporating an f-band term, to better describe 5f-electron behavior in actinide compounds.

Findings

Phase diagram showing coexistence of Kondo effect and ferromagnetism.

Calculated Kondo and Curie temperatures as functions of model parameters.

Explanation of pressure dependence of Curie temperature in uranium compounds.

Abstract

Magnetic properties of uranium and neptunium compounds showing the coexistence of Kondo screening effect and ferromagnetic order are investigated within the Anderson lattice Hamiltonian with a two-fold degenerate $f$-level in each site, corresponding to $5f^2$ electronic configuration with $S=1$ spins. A derivation of the Schrieffer-Wolff transformation is presented and the resulting Hamiltonian has an effective $f$-band term, in addition to the regular exchange Kondo interaction between the $S=1$ $f$-spins and the $s=1/2$ spins of the conduction electrons. The obtained effective Kondo lattice model can describe both the Kondo regime and a weak delocalization of $5f$-electron. Within this model we compute the Kondo and Curie temperatures as a function of model parameters, namely the Kondo exchange interaction constant $J_K$, the magnetic intersite exchange interaction $J_H$ and the effective $f$-bandwidth. We deduce, therefore, a phase diagram of the model which yields the coexistence of Kondo effect and ferromagnetic ordering and also accounts for the pressure dependence of the Curie temperature of uranium compounds such as UTe.