Efficient spin transfer phenomena in Fe/MgO/GaAs structure

The efficiency of spin polarized charge transfer was investigated in an Fe/MgO tunnel barrier/GaAs based structure using spin dependent photocurrent measurements, whereby a spin imbalance in carrier population was generated in the GaAs by circularly polarized light. The dominance of tunneling transport processes over Schottky emission gave rise to a high spin transfer efficiency of 35% under the photovoltaic mode of device operation. A spin dependent tunneling conductance associated with spin polarized electron transport was identified by the observation of phase changes. This transport prevails over the unpolarized electron and hole conduction over the bias range which corresponds to flat band conditions.