# Skew Andreev reflection in ferromagnet/superconductor junctions

## TL;DR

This paper theoretically investigates how a semiconducting interface with spin-orbit coupling causes asymmetric Andreev reflection in ferromagnet/superconductor junctions, leading to charge imbalances and tunable supercurrents.

## Contribution

It introduces the concept of skew Andreev reflection caused by spin-orbit effects at the interface, revealing a giant, tunable transverse supercurrent response.

## Key findings

- Skew AR causes significant charge imbalances and Hall currents.
- The effect is greatly enhanced compared to normal AR.
- Transverse supercurrents can be widely tuned via interface properties.

## Abstract

Andreev reflection (AR) in ferromagnet/superconductor junctions is an indispensable spectroscopic tool for measuring spin polarization. We study theoretically how the presence of a thin semiconducting interface in such junctions, inducing Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling, modifies AR processes. The interface gives rise to an effective momentum- and spin-dependent scattering potential, making the probability of AR strongly asymmetric with respect to the sign of the incident electrons' transverse momenta. This skew AR creates spatial charge carrier imbalances and transverse Hall currents flow in the ferromagnet. We show that the effect is giant, as compared to the normal regime. We provide a quantitative analysis and a qualitative picture of this phenomenon, and finally show that skew AR also leads to a widely tunable transverse supercurrent response in the superconductor.