Abstract
The Edelstein effect produces a homogeneous magnetization in nonmagnetic materials with broken inversion symmetry which is generated and tuned exclusively electrically. Often the spin Edelstein effect—that is, a spin density in response to an applied electric field—is considered. In this paper we report on the electrically induced magnetization that comprises contributions from the spin and the orbital moments. Our theory for these spin and orbital Edelstein effects is applied to the topologically nontrivial two-dimensional electron gas at interfaces. In this particular system the orbital Edelstein effect exceeds the spin Edelstein effect by more than one order of magnitude. This finding is explained mainly by orbital moments of different magnitude in the Rashba-like split band pairs, while the spin moments are of almost equal magnitude.
- Received 26 June 2020
- Revised 5 February 2021
- Accepted 5 February 2021
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.3.013275
Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.
Published by the American Physical Society
Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)
synopsis
Electron’s Orbital Motion Dominates a Spintronic Effect
Published 24 March 2021
In a two-dimensional material, the orbital motion of electrons, rather than their spin, is the dominant contribution to an effect harnessed by spintronic devices.
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