Spin transistor operation driven by the Rashba spin-orbit coupling in the gated nanowire

Journal Article · Fri Mar 14 00:00:00 EDT 2014 · Journal of Applied Physics

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4868691· OSTI ID:22277874

Wójcik, P.; Spisak, B. J.; Wołoszyn, M. ^[1]

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1. Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, al. Mickiewicza 30, Kraków (Poland)

A theoretical description has been proposed for the operation of the spin transistor in the gate-controlled InAs nanowire. The calculated current-voltage characteristics show that the electron current flowing from the source (spin injector) to the drain (spin detector) oscillates as a function of the gate voltage, which results from the precession of the electron spin caused by the Rashba spin-orbit interaction in the vicinity of the gate. We have studied the operation of the spin transistor under the following conditions: (A) the full spin polarization of electrons in the contacts, zero temperature, and the single conduction channel corresponding to the lowest-energy subband of the transverse motion and (B) the partial spin polarization of the electrons in the contacts, the room temperature, and the conduction via many transverse subbands taken into account. For case (A), the spin-polarized current can be switched on/off by the suitable tuning of the gate voltage, for case (B) the current also exhibits the pronounced oscillations but with no-zero minimal values. The computational results obtained for case (B) have been compared with the recent experimental data and a good agreement has been found.

• OSTI ID: 22277874
• Journal Information: Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 115, Issue 10; Other Information: (c) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0021-8979
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
ELECTRIC CONDUCTIVITY
ELECTRIC CURRENTS
ELECTRIC POTENTIAL
ELECTRONS
INDIUM ARSENIDES
L-S COUPLING
OPERATION
OSCILLATIONS
QUANTUM WIRES
SPIN
SPIN ORIENTATION
TEMPERATURE RANGE 0273-0400 K
TRANSISTORS