Surface excitations relaxation in the Kondo insulator Sm 1 − x Gd x B 6

The interplay between nontrivial topological states of matter and strong electronic correlations is one of the most compelling open questions in condensed matter physics. Due to experimental challenges, there is an increasing desire to find more microscopic techniques to complement the results of more traditional experiments. In this work, we locally explore the Kondo insulator ${\mathrm{Sm}}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}{\mathrm{Gd}}_{x}{\mathrm{B}}_{6}$ by means of electron spin resonance (ESR) of ${\mathrm{Gd}}^{3+}$ ions at low temperatures. Our analysis reveals that the ${\mathrm{Gd}}^{3+}$ ESR line shape shows an anomalous evolution as a function of temperature, wherein for highly dilute samples $(x\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}\ensuremath{\approx}0.0002)$ the ${\mathrm{Gd}}^{3+}$ ESR line shape changes from a localized ESR local moment character to a diffusive-like character. Upon manipulating the sample surface with a focused ion beam we demonstrate, in combination with electrical resistivity measurements, that the localized character of the ${\mathrm{Gd}}^{3+}$ ESR line shape is recovered by increasing the penetration of the microwave in the sample. This provides compelling evidence for the contribution of surface or near-surface excitations to the relaxation mechanism in the ${\mathrm{Gd}}^{3+}$ spin dynamics. Our work brings new insights into the importance of nontrivial surface excitations in ESR, opening new routes to be explored both theoretically and experimentally.