Multi-Component Electronic Correlations in Non-Centrosymmetric f-Electron Compounds

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In metallic f-electron compounds the effects of electronic correlations are exceptionally pronounced, driving conventional and unconventional forms of spin and charge order. Despite many decades of intense research in heavy fermion materials, an important unresolved question concerns to what extent the effects of strong correlations reflect the interplay of nearly equivalent energy scales such as magnetic interactions, spin and lattice anisotropies, crystal electric fields magneto-elastic coupling etc. Recent studies in non-centrosymmetric f-electron compounds reveal, that the coupling of phonons, crystal field excitations and magnons stabilise new forms of hybrid excitations, unconventional superconductivity and complex forms of magnetic order. We propose to develop a detailed phenomenological account of the nature of electronic correlations in carefully selected non-centrosymmetric f-electron compounds, combining the preparation of high quality single-crystals, bulk and transport measurements under extreme conditions, comprehensive neutron scattering studies and measurements of quantum oscillations. We propose to focus in our studies on the class of isostructural CeTAl3 and CeTGa3 compounds (where T stands for a transition metal), as well as complimentary systems selected to expose unconventional behaviour.