Optical evidence of itinerant-localized crossover of 4f electrons in cerium compounds

Cerium (Ce)-based heavy-fermion materials have a characteristic double-peak structure (mid-IR peak) in the optical conductivity [σ(ω)] spectra originating from the strong conduction (c)-f electron hybridization. To clarify the behavior of the mid-IR peak at a low c-f hybridization strength, we compared the σ(ω) spectra of the isostructural antiferromagnetic and heavy-fermion Ce compounds with the calculated unoccupied density of states and the spectra obtained from the impurity Anderson model. With decreasing c-f hybridization intensity, the mid-IR peak shifts to the low-energy side owing to the renormalization of the unoccupied 4f state, but suddenly shifts to the high-energy side owing to the f-f on-site Coulomb interaction at a slight localized side from the quantum critical point (QCP). This finding gives us information on the change in the electronic structure across QCP.