{
  "id": "1604.06502",
  "version": "v1",
  "published": "2016-04-21T21:52:03.000Z",
  "updated": "2016-04-21T21:52:03.000Z",
  "title": "Spin Transport at Interfaces with Spin-Orbit Coupling: Phenomenology",
  "authors": [
    "V. P. Amin",
    "M. D. Stiles"
  ],
  "categories": [
    "cond-mat.mes-hall"
  ],
  "abstract": "Spin transport remains poorly understood in multilayer systems with interfacial spin-orbit coupling. While the important consequences of interfacial spin-orbit coupling can be captured by a spin-dependent Boltzmann equation, currently they cannot be captured by drift-diffusion models, which are the primary tools used for analyzing experiments. Here we present boundary conditions suitable for drift-diffusion models that capture the phenomenology of spin-orbit torques at interfaces. We compare solutions of the drift-diffusion equations using these boundary conditions to solutions of the spin-dependent Boltzmann equation for a heavy metal/ferromagnet bilayer. We find that the drift-diffusion equations predict spin torques in quantitative agreement with the Boltzmann equation and allow for a much simpler interpretation of the results. A key feature of these boundary conditions is their ability to capture the scattering that carriers experience while flowing along an interface. In the presence of interfacial spin-orbit coupling, this scattering generates spin currents that flow away from the interface. In heavy metal/ferromagnet bilayers, these spin currents provide an important mechanism for the creation of damping-like and field-like torques; they also lead to possible reinterpretations of experiments in which interfacial contributions to spin torques are thought to be suppressed.",
  "revisions": [
    {
      "version": "v1",
      "updated": "2016-04-21T21:52:03.000Z"
    }
  ],
  "analyses": {
    "keywords": [
      "spin transport",
      "interfacial spin-orbit coupling",
      "transport remains poorly understood",
      "spin-dependent boltzmann equation",
      "boundary conditions"
    ],
    "note": {
      "typesetting": "TeX",
      "pages": 0,
      "language": "en",
      "license": "arXiv",
      "status": "editable"
    }
  }
}