CM - AMO SEMINAR | Spin-Charge Conversion and Spin Current Generation in Electron Liquids

Semiconductor quantum wells, metallic surfaces and interfaces, layered oxides, and monolayer materials are all promising platforms for the observation of spin-charge conversion and the generation of spin currents due to strong spin-orbit interaction in quasi two- dimensional electron liquids. In this talk I focus on the theoretical description of a number of effects that appear to be promising for spintronic applications. These effects are (1) the conversion of a charge current into a spin current (spin Hall effect) and its inverse; (2) the generation of spin polarization from an electric current (Edelstein effect) and its inverse (spin-galvanic effect); (3) the spin current swapping effect whereby a current of x-oriented spins traveling in the y direction acts as a source for a current of y-oriented spins in the x direction. I will show how the SU(2) drift-diffusion theory allows a unified treatment of these effects, and will briefly describe some of their prospective applications in spintronic technology.