Effective models focused on pertinent low-energy degrees of freedom have substantially contributed to our qualitative understanding of quantum materials. An iconic example, the Kondo model, was key to demonstrating that the rich phase diagrams of correlated metals originate from the interplay of localized and itinerant electrons. Modern electronic structure calculations suggest that to achieve quantitative material-specific models, accurate consideration of the crystal field and spin-orbit interactions is imperative. This poses the question of how local high-energy degrees of freedom become incorporated into a collective electronic state. Here, we use resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) on CePd3 to clarify the fate of all relevant energy scales. We find that even spin-orbit excited states acquire pronounced momentum-dependence at low temperature-the telltale sign of hybridization with the underlying metallic state. Our results demonstrate how localized electronic degrees of freedom endow correlated metals with new properties, which is critical for a microscopic understanding of superconducting, electronic nematic, and topological states.

Advanced Light Source Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory Berkeley CA 94720 USA

ALBA Synchrotron Light Source E 08290 Cerdanyola del Vallès Barcelona Spain

Chemical Sciences Division Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Berkeley CA 94720 USA

Department of Physics and Astronomy University of California Irvine CA 92697 USA

Department of Physics and Electronics Graduate School of Engineering Osaka Prefecture University Sakai Osaka 599 8531 Japan

European Synchrotron Radiation Facility BP 220 F 38043 Grenoble Cedex France

Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin Bessy 2 D 12489 Berlin Germany

Institute for Advanced Studies Technische Universität München D 85748 Garching Germany

Institute for Solid State and Materials Physics Technical University of Dresden 01062 Dresden Germany

Institute for Solid State Physics TU Wien 1040 Vienna Austria

Institute of Physics 2 University of Cologne Cologne Germany

Institute of Physics of the CAS Cukrovarnická 10 162 00 Praha 6 Czechia

Laboratory for Neutron and Muon Instrumentation Paul Scherrer Institute CH 5232 Villigen Switzerland

Los Alamos National Laboratory Los Alamos NM 87545 USA

Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids Dresden Germany

Oak Ridge National Laboratory Oak Ridge TN 37831 USA

Physik Department Technische Universität München D 85748 Garching Germany

Physik Institut Universität Zürich Winterthurerstrasse 190 CH 8057 Zürich Switzerland

Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory Menlo Park CA 94025 USA

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