Giant Nernst effect in heavy-electron metals

Recent studies of the Nernst effect in a number of heavy-fermion systems have led to a previously unsuspected result. In some circumstances, the Nernst signal of quasi-particles becomes very large and can easily overwhelm the well-known Nernst effect produced by the movement of the superconducting vortices under the influence of a thermal gradient. In particular, the Nernst coefficient attains an exceptionally large magnitude in the ordered states of URu₂ Si₂ and PrFe₄ P₁₂. In all these cases, the order of magnitude of the Nernst signal appears compatible with the Boltzmann picture which links the Nernst coefficient to the energy-dependence of the Hall angle.