Contrary to the well known spin qubits, rare-earth qubits are characterized by a strong influence of crystal field due to large spin-orbit coupling. At low temperature and in the presence of resonance microwaves, it is the magnetic moment of the crys
tal-field ground-state which nutates (for several $mu$s) and the Rabi frequency $Omega_R$ is anisotropic. Here, we present a study of the variations of $Omega_R(vec{H}_{0})$ with the magnitude and direction of the static magnetic field $vec{H_{0}}$ for the odd $^{167}$Er isotope in a single crystal CaWO$_4$:Er$^{3+}$. The hyperfine interactions split the $Omega_R(vec{H}_{0})$ curve into eight different curves which are fitted numerically and described analytically. These spin-orbit qubits should allow detailed studies of decoherence mechanisms which become relevant at high temperature and open new ways for qubit addressing using properly oriented magnetic fields.
We address the fundamental question of crossover from localized to itinerant state of a paradigmatic heavy fermionmaterial CeIrIn5. The temperature evolution of the one electron spectra and the optical conductivity is predicted from first principles
calculation. The buildup of coherence in the form of a dispersive many body feature is followed in detail and its effects on the conduction electrons and optical conductivity of the material is revealed. We find multiple hybridization gaps and link them to the crystal structure of the material. Our theoretical approach explains the multiple peak structures observed in optical experiments and the sensitivity of CeIrIn5 to substitutions of the transition metal element and may provide a microscopic basis for the more phenomenological descriptions currently used to interpret experiments in heavy fermion systems.
