Theory of Heavy Fermions and Valence Fluctuations

This volume contains the proceedings of the Eighth Taniguchi Interna­ tional Symposium on the Theory of Condensed Matter, which was held at Shima Kanko Hotel in Shima, Japan, 10-13 April 1985. The topic of the Symposium was Valence Fluctuation and Heavy Fermion Systems, one of the most fundamental problems in present-day condensed matter physics. The dilute Kondo problem, which is one of the most typical and unique many-body problems in condensed matter physics, developed recently into the dense Kondo and the coherent Kondo lattice problems in the 4f elec­ tron systems. It is accepted now that a large degeneracy in f-electron systems makes this latter situation possible by enhancing the single-site Kondo state relative to the inter-site magnetic interactions. Now, anoma­ lous behavior in f-electron systems show rich variety and are called valence fluctuation phenomena as a whole. They have, however, a common fea­ ture. In the lowest temperature region, they show either heavy Fermion­ like character or a narrow gap formation at the Fermi energy. Discovery of superconductivity in the heavy Fermion systems is attracting more in­ terest. Anyway, the valence fluctuating states are thought to be of fun­ damental importance to bridge the gap between the localized magnetic states and the delocalized nownagnetic states.