From Low-Field Sondheimer Oscillations to High-Field Very Large and Linear Magnetoresistance in a SrTiO3-Based Two-Dimensional Electron Gas.

Quantum materials harbor a cornucopia of exotic transport phenomena challenging our understanding of condensed matter. Among these, a giant, nonsaturating linear magnetoresistance (MR) has been reported in various systems, from Weyl semimetals to topological insulators. Its origin is often ascribed to unusual band structure effects, but it may also be caused by extrinsic sample disorder. Here, we report a very large linear MR in a SrTiO3 two-dimensional electron gas and, by combining transport measurements with electron spectromicroscopy, show that it is caused by nanoscale inhomogeneities that are self-organized during sample growth. Our data also reveal semiclassical Sondheimer oscillations arising from interferences between helicoidal electron trajectories, from which we determine the 2DEG thickness. Our results bring insight into the origin of linear MR in quantum materials, expand the range of functionalities of oxide 2DEGs, and suggest exciting routes to explore the interaction of linear MR with features like Rashba spin-orbit coupling.

Electric-Field Control of Spin Current Generation and Detection in Ferromagnet-Free SrTiO3-Based Nanodevices.

Spintronics entails the generation, transport, manipulation and detection of spin currents, usually in hybrid architectures comprising interfaces whose impact on performance is detrimental. In addition, how spins are generated and detected is generally material specific and determined by the electronic structure. Here, we demonstrate spin current generation, transport and electrical detection, all within a single non-magnetic material system: a SrTiO3 two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) with Rashba spin-orbit coupling. We show that the spin current is generated from a charge current by the 2D spin Hall effect, transported through a channel and reconverted into a charge current by the inverse 2D spin Hall effect. Furthermore, by adjusting the Fermi energy with a gate voltage we tune the generated and detected spin polarization and relate it to the complex multiorbital band structure of the 2DEG. We discuss the leading mechanisms of the spin-charge interconversion processes and argue for the potential of quantum oxide materials for future all-electrical low-power spin-based logic.

Mapping spin-charge conversion to the band structure in a topological oxide two-dimensional electron gas.

While spintronics has traditionally relied on ferromagnetic metals as spin generators and detectors, spin-orbitronics exploits the efficient spin-charge interconversion enabled by spin-orbit coupling in non-magnetic systems. Although the Rashba picture of split parabolic bands is often used to interpret such experiments, it fails to explain the largest conversion effects and their relationship with the electronic structure. Here, we demonstrate a very large spin-to-charge conversion effect in an interface-engineered, high-carrier-density SrTiO3 two-dimensional electron gas and map its gate dependence on the band structure. We show that the conversion process is amplified by enhanced Rashba-like splitting due to orbital mixing and in the vicinity of avoided band crossings with topologically non-trivial order. Our results indicate that oxide two-dimensional electron gases are strong candidates for spin-based information readout in new memory and transistor designs. Our results also emphasize the promise of topology as a new ingredient to expand the scope of complex oxides for spintronics.

Bimodal Phase Diagram of the Superfluid Density in LaAlO_{3}/SrTiO_{3} Revealed by an Interfacial Waveguide Resonator.

We explore the superconducting phase diagram of the two-dimensional electron system at the LaAlO_{3}/SrTiO_{3} interface by monitoring the frequencies of the cavity modes of a coplanar waveguide resonator fabricated in the interface itself. We determine the phase diagram of the superconducting transition as a function of the temperature and electrostatic gating, finding that both the superfluid density and the transition temperature follow a dome shape but that the two are not monotonically related. The ground state of this two-dimensional electron system is interpreted as a Josephson junction array, where a transition from long- to short-range order occurs as a function of the electronic doping. The synergy between correlated oxides and superconducting circuits is revealed to be a promising route to investigate these exotic compounds, complementary to standard magnetotransport measurements.

Magnetism, Spin Texture, and In-Gap States: Atomic Specialization at the Surface of Oxygen-Deficient SrTiO_{3}.

Motivated by recent spin- and angular-resolved photoemission (SARPES) measurements of the two-dimensional electronic states confined near the (001) surface of oxygen-deficient SrTiO_{3}, we explore their spin structure by means of ab initio density functional theory (DFT) calculations of slabs. Relativistic nonmagnetic DFT calculations display Rashba-like spin winding with a splitting of a few meV and when surface magnetism on the Ti ions is included, bands become spin-split with an energy difference ∼100 meV at the Γ point, consistent with SARPES findings. While magnetism tends to suppress the effects of the relativistic Rashba interaction, signatures of it are still clearly visible in terms of complex spin textures. Furthermore, we observe an atomic specialization phenomenon, namely, two types of electronic contributions: one is from Ti atoms neighboring the oxygen vacancies that acquire rather large magnetic moments and mostly create in-gap states; another comes from the partly polarized t_{2g} itinerant electrons of Ti atoms lying further away from the oxygen vacancy, which form the two-dimensional electron system and are responsible for the Rashba spin winding and the spin splitting at the Fermi surface.