Physical Review Letters · 2000 · 783 citations · 14 references
Natural SciencesPhysicsCondensed Matter PhysicsElectronic MaterialsSemiconductor DevicesElectronic Band StructureNanoelectronicsQuantum WellsSpintronic MaterialsSpintronicsTwo-dimensional SemiconductorsBand GeometryElectron DensityElectron Penetration DepthEnvelope Function ApproximationRashba EffectSpin-orbit SplittingTwo-dimensional Electron SystemsZero-field Splitting
The study reports zero‑field spin splitting in two‑dimensional electron systems. The Rashba parameter in the SAQW rises with electron density and can be tuned by a factor of ~2 via a front gate, with barrier‑penetration of the envelope wave function driving the spin‑orbit interaction. Applying a positive back‑gate voltage induces pronounced Rashba splitting in the SAQW, suggesting potential for high‑speed spintronic devices.
We report on zero-field spin splitting of two-dimensional electron systems. Though absent in the unbiased InAs square asymmetric quantum well (SAQW), the Rashba splitting becomes pronounced by applying a positive back-gate voltage. In our SAQW, the Rashba parameter alpha increases with electron density and is tuned by a factor of about 2 using an additional front gate without charging the well. We argue that the band-edge profile provides the important contribution for spin-orbit interaction due to barrier penetration of the envelope wave function. This mechanism can provide the potential for high speed implementation in spintronics.
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Electronic analog of the electro-optic modulator
Supriyo Datta, Biswajit Das · Applied Physics Letters · 1990 · 4.8K citations
Spin splitting in semiconductor heterostructures for<i>B→0</i>
G. Lommer, F. Malcher · Physical Review Letters · 1988 · 356 citations