Spin-dependent (magneto)transport through a ring due to spin-orbit interaction

TL;DR

This paper analytically studies electron transport in a one-dimensional ring with spin-orbit interaction and magnetic field, revealing how these factors influence conductance oscillations and their dependence on temperature and interaction strength.

Contribution

It derives explicit formulas for scattering coefficients in a spin-orbit coupled ring and extends previous conductance results to include effects of temperature and magnetic field.

Findings

Conductance oscillations depend on spin-orbit interaction strength and temperature.

Varying parameters can invert conductance maxima and minima.

Analytic expressions enable detailed analysis of spin-dependent transport.

Abstract

Electron transport through a one-dimensional ring connected with two external leads, in the presence of spin-orbit interaction (SOI) of strength \alpha and a perpendicular magnetic field is studied. Applying Griffith's boundary conditions we derive analytic expressions for the reflection and transmission coefficients of the corresponding one-electron scattering problem. We generalize earlier conductance results by Nitta et al. [Appl. Phys. Lett. 75, 695 (1999)] and investigate the influence of \alpha, temperature, and a weak magnetic field on the conductance. Varying \alpha and temperature changes the position of the minima and maxima of the magnetic-field dependent conductance, and it may even convert a maximum into a minimum and vice versa.