Spin Polarization via Electron Tunneling through an Indirect-Gap Semiconductor Barrier

Abstract

We study the spin dependent tunneling of electrons through a zinc-blende semiconductor with the indirect X (or D) minimum serving as the tunneling barrier. The basic difference between tunneling through the G vs. the X barrier is the linear-k spin-orbit splitting of the two spin bands at the X point, as opposed to the k3 Dresselhaus splitting at the G point. The linear coefficient of the spin splitting b at the X point is computed for several semiconductors using density-functional theory and the transport characteristics are calculated using the barrier tunneling model. We show that both the transmission coefficient as well as the spin polarization can be large, suggesting the potential application of these materials as spin filters.

9 pages

References in corpus (1)

• Spin-dependent tunnelling through a symmetric barrier

Cited by in corpus (11)

• Reversible spin texture in ferroelectric HfO2
• Evanescent states in 2D electron systems with spin-orbit interaction and spin-dependent transmission through a barrier
• Tunneling anomalous Hall effect in a ferroelectric tunnel junction
• Strain-Induced Conduction Band Spin Splitting in GaAs from First Principles Calculations
• Spin tunneling through an indirect barrier
• Spin-neutral currents for spintronics
• Spin injection via (110)-grown semiconductor barriers
• Spin polarization of electron current through a potential barrier in two-dimensional structures with spin-orbit interaction
• Remarkable low-energy properties of the pseudogapped semimetal Be${}_5$Pt
• Electron spin relaxation in X-valley of indirect bandgap AlxGa1-xAs: A new horizon for the realization of next generation spin-photonic devices
• Ab-initio calculations of spin tunneling through an indirect barrier