Switching of electrical current by spin precession in the first Landau level of an inverted-gap semiconductor

Abstract

We show how the quantum Hall effect in an inverted-gap semiconductor (with electron- and hole-like states at the conduction- and valence-band edges interchanged) can be used to inject, precess, and detect the electron spin along a one-dimensional pathway. The restriction of the electron motion to a single spatial dimension ensures that all electrons experience the same amount of precession in a parallel magnetic field, so that the full electrical current can be switched on and off. As an example, we calculate the magnetoconductance of a p-n interface in a HgTe quantum well and show how it can be used to measure the spin precession due to bulk inversion asymmetry.

5 pages, 4 figures, extended version

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Cited by in corpus (12)

• Topological insulators and superconductors
• Switching spin and charge between edge states in topological insulator constrictions
• Spin-helical transport in normal and superconducting topological insulators
• Ballistic quantum spin Hall state and enhanced edge backscattering in strong magnetic fields
• Microwave-driven ferromagnet--topological-insulator heterostructures: The prospect for giant spin battery effect and quantized charge pump devices
• Electrical switching and interferometry of massive Dirac particles in topological insulators constrictions
• Generating and controlling spin-polarized currents induced by a quantum spin Hall antidot
• Recursive Green's function method for multi-terminal nanostructures
• Effects of Defects and Dephasing on Charge and Spin Currents in Two-Dimensional Topological Insulators
• Controlling the Flow of Spin and Charge in Nanoscopic Topological Insulators
• Controlling the real-time dynamics of a spin coupled to the helical edge states of the Kane-Mele model
• KNIT : An open source code for quantum transport in multi-terminal systems