Pressure-Induced Magnetic-Nonmagnetic Transition of Ce Impurities in La

Abstract

A transition of Ce impurities from a magnetic to a nonmagnetic state has been observed in superconducting La: Ce alloys at high pressure. The critical pressure for maximum pair breaking in La: Ce alloys is lower for the fcc than for the dhcp phase. The highest transition temperature of an elemental superconductor (12\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}K) is reported for pure La at 140 kbar.