Electronic Transport Through EuO Spin Filter Tunnel Junctions

TL;DR

This study uses density functional theory to analyze EuO-based spin filter tunnel junctions, revealing their potential for near-perfect spin polarization and the influence of interface geometry on transport properties.

Contribution

It demonstrates that epitaxial EuO on Cu can serve as an effective spin filter with near 100% polarization, highlighting the role of interface structure and symmetry filtering in transport.

Findings

EuO acts as a perfect spin filter with near 100% polarization.

Transport is dominated by  symmetry states, leading to a larger transport gap.

High spin polarization is maintained at large bias voltages.

Abstract

Epitaxial spin filter tunnel junctions based on the ferromagnetic semiconductor europium monoxide, EuO, are investigated by means of density functional theory. In particular, we focus on the spin transport properties of Cu(100)/EuO(100)/Cu(100) junctions. The dependence of the transmission coefficient and the current-voltage curves on the interface spacing and on the EuO thickness is explained in terms of the EuO density of states and the complex band structure. Furthermore we also discuss the relation between the spin transport properties and the Cu-EuO interface geometry. The level alignment of the junction is sensitively affected by the interface spacing, since this determines the charge transfer between EuO and the Cu electrodes. Our calculations indicate that EuO epitaxially grown on Cu can act as a perfect spin filter, with a spin polarization of the current close to 100%, and with both the Eu-5d conduction band and the Eu-4f valence band states contributing to the coherent transport. For epitaxial EuO on Cu a symmetry filtering is observed, with the \Delta_1 states dominating the transmission. This leads to a transport gap larger than the fundamental EuO band gap. Importantly the high spin polarization of the current is preserved up to large bias voltages.