Spin-orbit coupled transport in a curved quantum wire

TL;DR

This paper analyzes how Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit couplings and a magnetic field influence spin transport in a curved quantum wire, providing analytical solutions and numerical results for optimizing spintronic device performance.

Contribution

It offers an analytical solution for eigenenergies and eigenfunctions considering both SOCs in a curved wire and explores their impact on spin transport properties.

Findings

Spin reversal is suppressed when magnetic field exceeds R^{1/3}.

Large SOC strength diminishes magnetic field effects on spin transport.

Optimal SOC strength is crucial for spintronic device efficiency.

Abstract

We study the interplay of both Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit couplings (SOCs) and a uniform perpendicular magnetic field $\textbf{B}$ on the transport of a spin-polarized electron along a curved quantum wire. Eigenenergies and eigenfunctions of the system were analytically solved in the presence of both SOCs for a confinement radius $R$. From the transmission coefficients, the spin transport properties such as spin polarization, probability current density and spin conductance were computed numerically to determine their dependence on the SOCs, $\textbf{B}$ and $R$. We find the condition for $\textbf{B}$ that if it is beyond $R^{1/3}$, no spin reversal will occur. Our results show that for a sufficiently large SOC strength, regardless of its inversion asymmetry origin, the effect of the external magnetic field is reduced. Finding the optimal effective SOC strength is essential in achieving suitable magneto-transport properties for possible spintronic device applications.