Ab-initio methods for spin-transport at the nanoscale level
arXiv:cond-mat/0503445
Abstract
Recent advances in atomic and nano-scale growth and characterization techniques have led to the production of modern magnetic materials and magneto-devices which reveal a range of new fascinating phenomena. The modeling of these is a tough theoretical challenging since one has to describe accurately both electronic structure of the constituent materials, and their transport properties. In this paper I review recent advances in modeling spin-transport at the atomic scale using first-principles methods, focusing both on the methodological aspects and on the applications. The review, which is designed as tutorial for students at postgraduate level, is structured in six main sections: 1) Introduction, 2) General concepts in spin-transport, 3) Transport Theory: Linear Response, 4) Transport Theory: Non-equilibrium Transport, 5) Results, 6) Conclusion. In addition an overview of the computational codes available to date is also included.
To be published in "Handbook of Computational Nanotechnology" (American Scientific Publishers, California 2004). Full text, also available at http://www.smeagol.tcd.ie 117 Pages, 42 figures, 270 references