Rashba type spin-orbit splitting of quantum well states in ultrathin Pb films

Abstract

A Rashba type spin-orbit splitting is found for quantum well states formed in ultrathin Pb films on Si(111). The resulting momentum splitting is comparable to what is found for semiconductor heterostructures. The splitting shows no coverage dependency and the sign of the spin polarization is reversed compared to Rashba splitting in the Au(111) surface state. We explain our results by competing effects at the two boundaries of the Pb layer.

References in corpus (2)

• Strong spin-orbit splitting on Bi surfaces
• Topological Change of the Fermi Surface in Low Density Rashba Gases: Application to Superconductivity

Cited by in corpus (6)

• Interplay of topological phases in magnetic adatom-chains on top of a Rashba superconducting surface
• A band structure scenario for the giant spin-orbit splitting observed at the Bi/Si(111) interface
• Unconventional Fermi surface spin textures in the Bi_xPb_{1-x}/Ag(111) surface alloy
• Tuning the Fermi level through the Dirac point of giant Rashba semiconductor BiTeI with pressure
• Controlling the effective mass of quantum well states in Pb/Si(111) by interface engineering
• Spin accumulation with spin-orbit interaction