Non-Fermi liquid behaviour in the heavy-fermion Kondo lattice Ce ₂Rh₃Al₉

In the heavy fermion class of strongly correlated electron systems, the Landau Fermi liquid description of metals has become a rather fragile basis on which to formulate an understanding of their ground state. The proximity to cooperative phenomena such as magnetic order and superconductivity and the amenability of Ce- and Yb-based compounds to be tuned into quantum criticality have been found to have extraordinary effects on the T→0 thermal scaling of electronic and magnetic properties. A collection of non-Fermi liquid scaling relations have thus far been proposed in the search for universality. Here we report on the physical properties of the heavy fermion Kondo lattice Ce ₂Rh₃Al₉. The low-temperature specific heat and electrical resistivity are best described by power laws in their temperature dependence, and we model these according to the expectation for a system close to a magnetic phase transition. We demonstrate how applied magnetic fields drive the transition from the Kondo coherent state, through a cross-over phase, and into Fermi-liquid behaviour at high fields and low temperatures.