Detection of Two Phenomena Opposite to the Expected Ones

Abstract

Both phenomena mentioned in the title were revealed by the electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) method. The first phenomenon was found in superconducting La metal with Er impurities—the spin relaxation rate of the erbium impurities was sharply decreasing after transition into the superconducting state instead of the expected, i.e., the well-known Hebel–Slichter peak. The second unexpected phenomenon was discovered in the YbRh2Si2 compound—an excellent EPR signal from the Yb ions was observed at temperatures below the Kondo temperature determined thermodynamically, while according to the existing belief the EPR signal should not be observed at these temperatures due to the Kondo effect. In this tribute to K. Alex Müller, I describe the nature of the detected phenomena.