11.

2 Valence: Integral, Mixed, Nearly Integral 621

small mixing energy22

(W- -- (412+ cf
-
L W
- eF0 exp { -W ( 4 - € f ) } - --
4v2
(Wv=O
L
4v2
-(l
W
- nf).

( 11.18)
Actually, the above expression holds for n 5 2, and a different rela-
tionship corresponds to 2 < n 5 3. The hybridization gap defined by
(11.16) still survives

(11.19)

In accordance with Luttinger’s theorem, we predict that the n = 2

system is a nearly integral valent insulator with an exponentially small
gap. Kondo insulators with gaps of order 1-10 K are thought to realize
this; we return to them a bit later.
The picture of renormalized hybridized bands is applicable both in
the mixed valent and the nearly integral valent regimes, but with quite
different parameters. In the mixed valence regime, the renormalized
bands look pretty much like the bare bands (Fig. 11.7), and the gap
opens (roughly speaking) at the f-level. For nearly integral valence, we
find an extremely narrow double-peak resonance pinned to the chemical
potential. The total weight of the two peaks is enough to hold one
electron per site23.
Recalling ( 11.15), we find

( 11.20)

We are led to conclude that nearly integral valent metals are heavy
Fermi liquids with exceptionally large values of the mass enhancement.
221tis a moot point whether the relevant energy scale, and the concomitant 1 -
n f , are indeed exponentially small. The fact that this follows from a variational
calculation, does not constitute a proof of the analytic form! However, for our present
purposes it is sufficient to know that it is a scale weaker than the leading order v2.
23The pair of narrow peaks is a further example of occupation-number dependent
features of the DOS, which are characteristic of strongly correlated systems. The
narrow feature is there only if it is actually occupied by almost 1 f-electron per site.
The shape of the DOS depends on n, and it has to be determined self-consistently.