Spin accumulation in the semi classical and quantum regimes

R. Mélin, D. Denaro

Published 2000-04-20, updated 2000-06-26Version 2

We consider spin accumulation at a ferromagnet--normal metal interface in the presence of magnetic scattering in the normal metal. In the classical regime, we discuss the inverse Drude scaling of the conductance as a function of the interface transparencies. We present a treatment based on an exact solution of the Boltzmann equation. In the quantum regime, we solve a single impurity ``spin-flip Fabry Perot interferometer'' for quantum coherent multiple scatterings, in which we find a resonance in the spin flip channels. This resonance appears to be the quantum analog of the semi classical inverse Drude scaling of the conductance.