The generic phase diagram of spin relaxation in solids and the Loschmidt echo

TL;DR

This paper develops a stochastic model for spin relaxation in solids, revealing new regimes with strong dephasing, and provides a universal formula for spin relaxation time based on key physical parameters.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive stochastic model and a generic approximate formula for spin relaxation time applicable across different regimes in solids.

Findings

Identified new spin-dephasing regimes in the phase diagram.

Derived a universal formula for spin relaxation time involving key parameters.

Validated the formula using numerical Loschmidt echo calculations.

Abstract

The spin relaxation time in solids is determined by several competing energy scales and processes and distinct methods are called for to analyze the various regimes. We present a stochastic model for the spin dynamics in solids which is equivalent to solving the spin Boltzmann equation and takes the relevant processes into account on equal footing. The calculations reveal yet unknown parts of the spin-relaxation phase diagram, where strong spin-dephasing occurs in addition to spin-relaxation. Spin-relaxation times are obtained for this regime by introducing the numerical Loschmidt echo. This allows us to construct a generic approximate formula for the spin-relaxation time, $\tau_{\text{s}}$, for the entire phase diagram, involving the quasiparticle scattering rate, $\Gamma$, spin-orbit coupling strength, $\mathcal{L}$, and a magnetic term, $\Delta_{\text{Z}}$ due to the Zeeman effect. The generic expression reads as $\hbar/\tau_{\text{s}}\approx \Gamma\cdot \mathcal{L}^2 /(\Gamma^2+\mathcal{L}^2+\Delta_{\text{Z}}^2)$.