Inelastic-impurity-scattering-induced spin texture and topological transitions in surface electron waves
Abstract
Inelastic scattering off magnetic impurities in a spin-chiral two-dimensional electron gas, e.g., the Rashba system, is shown to generate topological changes in the spin texture of the electron waves emanating from the scattering center. While elastic scattering gives rise to a purely in-plane spin texture for an in-plane magnetic scattering potential, out-of-plane components emerge upon activation of inelastic scattering processes. This property leads to a possibility to make controlled transitions between trivial and nontrivial topologies of the spin texture.
- Publication:
-
Physical Review B
- Pub Date:
- September 2015
- DOI:
- 10.1103/PhysRevB.92.125405
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1411.0377
- Bibcode:
- 2015PhRvB..92l5405F
- Keywords:
-
- 75.70.Tj;
- 73.22.-f;
- 75.30.Hx;
- 75.75.-c;
- Electronic structure of nanoscale materials: clusters nanoparticles nanotubes and nanocrystals;
- Magnetic impurity interactions;
- Condensed Matter - Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics;
- Condensed Matter - Materials Science;
- Condensed Matter - Other Condensed Matter
- E-Print:
- Five pages, six figures