Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction in transport through single molecule transistors

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction influences spin canting and transport properties in single molecule transistors, providing a method to determine its characteristics via three-terminal measurements.

Contribution

It introduces a theoretical prediction of non-linear transport signatures caused by Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction in molecular dimers, and proposes experimental ways to characterize this interaction.

Findings

Spin canting induced by Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction in single molecule transistors.

Non-linear conductance dependence on magnetic field orientation.

Method to determine the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya coupling vector using transport measurements.

Abstract

The Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction is shown to result in a canting of spins in a single molecule transistor. We predict non-linear transport signatures of this effect induced by spin-orbit coupling for the generic case of a molecular dimer. The conductance is calculated using a master equation and is found to exhibit a non-trivial dependence on the magnitude and direction of an external magnetic field. We show how three-terminal transport measurements allow for a determination of the coupling-vector characterizing the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction. In particular, we show how its orientation, defining the intramolecular spin chirality, can be probed with ferromagnetic electrodes.