Structural investigations of CeIrIn${_5}$ and CeCoIn${_5}$ on   macroscopic and atomic length scales
  For any thorough investigation of complex physical properties, as encountered in strongly correlated electron systems, not only single crystals of highest quality but also a detailed knowledge of the structural properties of the material are pivotal prerequisites. Here, we combine physical and chemical investigations on the prototypical heavy fermion superconductors CeIrIn${_5}$ and CeCoIn${_5}$ on atomic and macroscopic length scale to gain insight into their precise structural properties. Our approach spans from enhanced resolution X-ray diffraction experiments to atomic resolution by means of Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM) and reveal a certain type of local features (coexistence of minority and majority structural patterns) in the tetragonal HoCoGa$_5$-type structure of both compounds. 
Steffen Wirth, Yurii Prots, Michael Wedel, Stefan Ernst, Stefan   Kirchner, Zachary Fisk, Joe D. Thompson, Frank Steglich an...
cond-mat.str-el