Localization effects and inelastic scattering in disordered heavy electrons

TL;DR

This paper investigates how disorder and localization influence the electronic properties of heavy fermion metals, revealing a universal non-Fermi liquid behavior and complex temperature-dependent conduction phenomena.

Contribution

It introduces a generalized dynamical mean field theory that includes Anderson localization effects to study disordered heavy fermion systems, highlighting the emergence of non-Fermi liquid phases.

Findings

Non-Fermi liquid metallic behavior arises at moderate disorder.

Electronic Griffiths phase is identified as a precursor to Anderson localization.

Temperature-dependent conductivity shows interplay between disorder and inelastic scattering.

Abstract

We study ground state and finite temperature properties of disordered heavy fermion metals by using a generalization of dynamical mean field theory which incorporates Anderson localization effects. The emergence of a non-Fermi liquid metallic behavior even at moderate disorder is shown to be a universal phenomenon resulting from local density of states fluctuations. This behavior is found to have a character of an electronic Griffiths phase, and can be thought of as a precursor of Anderson localization in a strongly correlated host. The temperature dependence of the conducting properties of the system reveal a non-trivial interplay between disorder and inelastic processes, which is reminiscent of the Mooij correlations observed in many disordered metals.