Spin effects in a confined two-dimensional electron gas: Enhancement of the g factor, spin-inversion states, and their far-infrared absorption

We investigate several spin-related phenomena in a confined two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) using the Hartree-Fock approximation for the mutual Coulomb interaction of the electrons. The exchange term of the interaction causes a large splitting of the spin levels whenever the chemical potential lies within a Landau band (LB). This splitting can be reinterpreted as an enhancement of an effective g factor, ${\mathit{g}}^{\mathrm{*}}$. The increase of ${\mathit{g}}^{\mathrm{*}}$ when a LB is half-filled can be accompanied by a spontaneous formation of a static spin-inversion state (SIS) whose details depend on the system size. The coupling of the states of higher LB’s into the lowest band by the Coulomb interaction of the 2DEG is essential for the SIS to occur. The far-infrared absorption of the system, relatively insensitive to the spin splitting, develops clear signs of the SIS.