Resonant magnetic excitations are recognised as hallmarks of unconventional superconductivity in copper oxides, iron pnictides and heavy-fermion compounds. model calculations have related these modes to the microscopic properties of the pair wave function, but the mechanisms of their formation are still debated. Here we report the discovery of a similar resonant mode in the non-superconducting antiferromagnetic heavy-fermion metal CeB 6 . unlike conventional magnons, the mode is non-dispersive and is sharply peaked around a wave vector separate from those characterising the antiferromagnetic order. It is likely associated with a co-existing order parameter of the unusual antiferro-quadrupolar phase of CeB 6 , which has long remained hidden to neutron-scattering probes. The mode energy increases continuously below the onset temperature for antiferromagnetism, in parallel to the opening of a nearly isotropic spin gap throughout the Brillouin zone. These attributes are similar to those of the resonant modes in unconventional superconductors. This unexpected commonality between the two disparate ground states indicates the dominance of itinerant spin dynamics in the ordered lowtemperature phases of CeB 6 and throws new light on the interplay between antiferromagnetism, superconductivity and 'hidden' order parameters in correlated-electron materials.

Heavy-fermion metals exhibit a plethora of low-temperature ordering phenomena . Among these are the so-called hidden-order phases that, in contrast to conventional magnetic order, are invisible to standard neutron diffraction experiments. One of the structurally most simple hidden-order compounds, CeB6, has been intensively studied for an elusive phase that was attributed to the antiferroquadrupolar ordering of cerium-4f moments . As the ground state of CeB6 is characterized by a more conventional antiferromagnetic (AFM) order , the low-temperature physics of this system has generally been assumed to be governed solely by AFM interactions between the dipolar and multipolar Ce moments . Here we overturn this established picture by observing an intense ferromagnetic (FM) low-energy collective mode that dominates the magnetic excitation spectrum of CeB6. Inelastic neutron-scattering data reveal that the intensity of this FM excitation significantly exceeds that of conventional spin-wave magnons emanating from the AFM wavevectors, thus placing CeB6 much closer to a FM instability than previously anticipated. This propensity for ferromagnetism may account for much of the unexplained behaviour of CeB6, and should lead to a re-examination of existing theories that have so far largely neglected the role of FM interactions.

The rise of topology in condensed matter physics has generated strong interest in identifying novel quantum materials in which topological protection is driven by electronic correlations. Samarium hexaboride is a Kondo insulator for which it has been proposed that a band inversion between 5d and 4f bands gives rise to topologically protected surface states. However, unambiguous proof of the existence and topological nature of these surface states is still missing, and its low-energy electronic structure is still not fully established. Here we present a study of samarium hexaboride by ultra-low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy. We obtain clear atomically resolved topographic images of the sample surface. Our tunneling spectra reveal signatures of a hybridization gap with a size of about 8 meV and with a reduction of the differential conductance inside the gap by almost half, and surprisingly, several strong resonances below the Fermi level. The spatial variations of the energy of the resonances point towards a microscopic variation of the electronic states by the different surface terminations. High-resolution tunneling spectra acquired at 100 mK reveal a splitting of the Kondo resonance, possibly due to the crystal electric field.

The dodecaboride LuB12 with cage-glass state and rattling modes has been studied to clarify the nature of the large amplitude vibrations of Lu ions. Discovered anisotropy of charge transport in conjunction with distortions of the conventional fcc symmetry of the crystal lattice may be attributed to coherent motion of Lu ions along singular direction in the lattice. Arguments are presented in favor of cooperative dynamic Jahn-Teller effect in the boron sublattice to be the reason of the rattling mode, lattice distortion and formation of the filamentary structure of the conductive channels. PACS numbers: 61.66.Fn, 72.15.Gd: