Molecular engineering of Rashba spin-charge converter.

In heterostructures with broken inversion symmetry, the electrons' motion is coupled to their spin through interface-driven spin-orbit coupling: the Rashba effect. The Rashba effect enables the interconversion between spin and charge currents, offering a variety of novel spintronic phenomena and functionalities. However, despite the significant progress in Rashba physics, controlling the spin-charge conversion in metallic heterostructures remains a major challenge. We show that molecular self-assembly provides a way to engineer the Rashba spin-charge converters. We demonstrate that magnetoresistance and voltage generation originating from the spin-charge conversion in metallic heterostructures can be manipulated by decorating the surface with self-assembled organic monolayers through the cooperative molecular field effect. We also demonstrate reversible phototuning of the spin-charge conversion through light-driven molecular transformations using a molecule that can photoisomerize between the trans and cis states. These findings, with the almost-infinite chemical tunability of organic monolayers, pave the way toward molecular engineering of spin-orbit devices.

Rashba-Edelstein Magnetoresistance in Metallic Heterostructures.

We report the observation of magnetoresistance originating from Rashba spin-orbit coupling (SOC) in a metallic heterostructure: the Rashba-Edelstein (RE) magnetoresistance. We show that the simultaneous action of the direct and inverse RE effects in a Bi/Ag/CoFeB trilayer couples current-induced spin accumulation to the electric resistance. The electric resistance changes with the magnetic-field angle, reminiscent of the spin Hall magnetoresistance, despite the fact that bulk SOC is not responsible for the magnetoresistance. We further found that, even when the magnetization is saturated, the resistance increases with increasing the magnetic-field strength, which is attributed to the Hanle magnetoresistance in this system.

Theory of spin Hall magnetoresistance (SMR) and related phenomena.

We review the so-called spin Hall magnetoresistance (SMR) in bilayers of a magnetic insulator and a metal, in which spin currents are generated in the normal metal by the spin Hall effect. The associated angular momentum transfer to the ferromagnetic layer and thereby the electrical resistance is modulated by the angle between the applied current and the magnetization direction. The SMR provides a convenient tool to non-invasively measure the magnetization direction and spin-transfer torque to an insulator. We introduce the minimal theoretical instruments to calculate the SMR, i.e. spin diffusion theory and quantum mechanical boundary conditions. This leads to a small set of parameters that can be fitted to experiments. We discuss the limitations of the theory as well as alternative mechanisms such as the ferromagnetic proximity effect and Rashba spin-orbit torques, and point out new developments.