Caltech and Yale calculate the Kondo effect in real materials
Researchers at Caltech and Yale have developed a method to calculate the Kondo effect using a material’s atomic and electronic structure, rather than relying on simplified models. In tests on seven transition-metal atoms embedded in copper, the calculations were as much as 100 times more accurate than conventional predictions for most of the elements examined, the researchers report in Science.
Bottom line — The method’s next test is whether it can scale from copper impurities to more complex materials such as high-temperature superconductors.
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The Kondo effect occurs when cooling a metal containing a magnetic impurity causes its electrical resistance to stop falling and then rise.
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According to the researchers, electrons in the metal interact with the impurity’s spin and partially screen its magnetism.
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The team adapted computational techniques developed in quantum chemistry to represent magnetic impurities while retaining complex electronic interactions.
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Garnet Chan of Caltech describes the materials studied so far as a prototype problem for investigating quantum magnets and high-temperature superconductors.
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