Generation and control of spin-polarized photocurrents in GaMnAs heterostructures

Autor(es)

Bezerra, Anibal T. ^{[1, 2]} ; Castelano, Leonardo K. ^[1] ; Degani, Marcos H. ^{[2, 3]} ; Maialle, Marcelo Z. ^{[3, 2]} ; Farinas, Paulo F. ^{[1, 2]} ; Studart, Nelson ^{[1, 2]}

Afiliação do(s) autor(es)

^[1] Univ Fed Sao Carlos, Dept Fis, BR-13565905 Sao Carlos, SP - Brazil

^[2] CNPq MCT, DISSE Inst Nacl Ciencia & Tecnol Nanodisposit Sem, Rio De Janeiro, RJ - Brazil

^[3] Univ Estadual Campinas, Fac Ciencias Aplicadas, BR-13484350 Limeira, SP - Brazil

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: Applied Physics Letters; v. 104, n. 2 JAN 13 2014.
• Citações Web of Science: 2

Resumo

Photocurrents are calculated for a specially designed GaMnAs semiconductor heterostructure. The results reveal regions in the infrared range of the energy spectrum, in which the proposed structure is remarkably spin-selective. For such photon energies, the generated photocurrents are strongly spin-polarized. Application of a relatively small static bias in the growth direction of the structure is predicted to efficiently reverse the spin-polarization for some photon energies. This behavior suggests the possibility of conveniently simple switching mechanisms. The physics underlying the results is studied and understood in terms of the spin-dependent properties emerging from the particular potential profile of the structure. (C) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 12/13052-6 - Propriedades de transporte e computação quântica em nanoestruturas
• Beneficiário: Leonardo Kleber Castelano
• Linha de fomento: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular