3.

8 The f2 Configuration 119

of the 2 x 2 eigenvalue problem is

and the eigenvalues are

If the field becomes very strong, the Zeeman splitting dominates over
the crystal field splitting, and the eigenvalues approach f2gPBHZ. The
corresponding eigenstates evolve from Ira),lrt4) towards the pure Jz
eigenstates 12), I - 2).
Similarly, II’tI) is coupled to lI’t2). However, lrt2)couples also to
the second, higher-lying II’tI) state whose existence we deduce from
(3.61). We do not wish to treat this 3 x 3 eigenvalue problem formally

-
because the outcome is clear: in high fields, the lowest of the three
levels belongs to 14), and its energy is -4gpgH’. At some threshold
field, this becomes lower than X3. Thus there must be a level crossing
as a function of the magnetic field at some critical value H,,, where
the nature of the ground state changes from JI’t&like to JI’tl)-like,and
it is accompanied by a sudden jump in the magnetization. This is an
example of the so-called rnetarnagnetic transition21.
As B matter of fact, URu2Si2 shows several closely spaced meta-
magnetic transitions around 36T (Fig. 3.11) [81, 3801. The full story
N

is obviously quite complicated but the kind of level-crossing we have

been discussing, is likely to be part of an eventual explanation.
As we are going to see in the solution to Problem 3.6 in pp. 142-
144,even a simplified four-level “toy model” sufEces to predict a static
magnetic behaviour which looks remarkably similar to the experimental
findings on URu$32. In particular, the result for the temperature de-
pendence of the x-component of the susceptibility (Fig. 3.16) is in nice
We will speak about a metamagnetic transition whenever we find that the applied
field causes a discontinuous (or at least an anomalously fast) increase of magnetiaa-
tion. Such behaviour can result from a great variety of causes; in addition to crystal
field effects, we will discuss transitions caused by the nearness to a ferromagnetic
phase fp. 396 and p. 484), or to the Mott-localized state (p. 592). See [160]for a
concise treatise on metamagnetism.