  [published in Phys. Rev. B 85, 035119 (2012)] The evolution of spin dynamics
from the quantum critical system YbRh2Si2 to the stable trivalent Yb system
YbCo2Si2 was investigated by Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) spectroscopy. While
the Kondo temperature changes by one order of magnitude, all compositions of
the single crystalline series Yb(Rh1-xCox)2Si2 show well defined ESR spectra
with a clear Yb3+ character for temperatures below \approx 20 K. With
increasing Co-content the ESR g-factor along the c-direction strongly increases
indicating a continuous change of the ground state wave function and, thus, a
continuous change of the crystal electric field. The linewidth presents a
complex dependence on the Co-content and is discussed in terms of the Co-doping
dependence of the Kondo interaction, the magnetic anisotropy and the influence
of ferromagnetic correlations between the 4f states. The results provide
evidence that, for low Co-doping, the Kondo interaction allows narrow ESR
spectra despite the presence of a large magnetic anisotropy, whereas at high
Co-concentrations, the linewidth is controlled by ferromagnetic correlations. A
pronounced broadening due to critical correlations at low temperatures is only
observed at the highest Co-content. This might be related to the presence of
incommensurate magnetic fluctuations.
