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Title: Spin-current-driven thermoelectric generation based on interfacial spin-orbit coupling

Journal Article · · Applied Physics Letters
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4953879· OSTI ID:22590792
 [1]; ;  [2];  [3];  [1];  [1]
  1. Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8577 (Japan)
  2. Institute for Solid State Physics, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581 (Japan)
  3. Center for Emergent Matter Science, RIKEN, Wako, Saitama 351-0198 (Japan)

The longitudinal spin Seebeck effect (SSE) in Bi{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Cu/yttrium-iron-garnet (YIG) devices has been investigated. When an out-of-plane temperature gradient is applied to the Bi{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Cu/YIG device, a spin current is generated across the Cu/YIG interface via the SSE and then converted into electric voltage due to the spin–orbit coupling at the Bi{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Cu interface. The sign of the SSE voltage in the Bi{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Cu/YIG devices is opposite to that induced by the conventional inverse spin Hall effect in Pt/YIG devices. The SSE voltage in the Bi{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Cu/YIG devices disappears in the absence of the Bi{sub 2}O{sub 3} layer and its thermoelectric conversion efficiency is independent of the Cu thickness, indicating the important role of the Bi{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Cu interface. This result demonstrates that not only the bulk inverse spin Hall effect but also the spin–orbit coupling near the interface can be used for SSE-based thermoelectric generation.

OSTI ID:
22590792
Journal Information:
Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 108, Issue 24; Other Information: (c) 2016 Author(s); Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0003-6951
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English