One of the most fundamental phenomena and a reminder of the electrons relativistic nature is the Rashba spin splitting for broken inversion symmetry. Usually this splitting is a tiny relativistic correction, hardly discernible in experiment. Interfacing a ferroelectric, BaTiO$_3$, and a heavy 5$d$ metal with a large spin-orbit coupling, Ba(Os,Ir)O$_3$, we show that giant Rashba spin splittings are indeed possible and even fully controllable by an external electric field. Based on density functional theory and a microscopic tight binding understanding, we conclude that the electric field is amplified and stored as a ferroelectric Ti-O distortion which, through the network of oxygen octahedra, also induces a large Os-O distortion. The BaTiO$_3$/BaOsO$_3$ heterostructure is hence the ideal test station for studying the fundamentals of the Rashba effect. It allows intriguing application such as the Datta-Das transistor to operate at room temperature.
The two-orbital double-exchange model is employed for the study of the magnetic and orbital orders in ($R$MnO$_3$)$_n$/($A$MnO$_3$)$_{2n}$ ($R$: rare earths; $A$: alkaline earths) superlattices. The A-type antiferromagnetic order is observed in a broad region of parameter space for the case of SrTiO$_3$ as substrate, in agreement with recent experiments and first-principles calculations using these superlattices. In addition, also a C-type antiferromagnetic state is predicted to be stabilized when using substrates like LaAlO$_3$ with smaller lattice constants than SrTiO$_3$, again in agreement with first principles results. The physical mechanism for the stabilization of the A- and C- magnetic transitions is driven by the orbital splitting of the $x^2-y^2$ and $3z^2-r^2$ orbitals. This splitting is induced by the $Q_3$ mode of Jahn-Teller distortions created by the strain induced by the substrates. In addition to the special example of (LaMnO$_3$)$_n$/(SrMnO$_3$)$_{2n}$, our phase diagrams can be valuable for the case where the superlattices are prepared employing narrow bandwidth manganites. In particular, several non-homogenous magnetic profiles are predicted to occur in narrow bandwidth superlattices, highlighting the importance of carrying out investigations in this mostly unexplored area of research.
In a recent publication (S. Dong et al., Phys. Rev. Lett.103, 127201 (2009)), two (related) mechanisms were proposed to understand the intrinsic exchange bias present in oxides heterostructures involving G-type antiferromagnetic perovskites. The first mechanism is driven by the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction, which is a spin-orbit coupling effect. The second is induced by the ferroelectric polarization, and it is only active in heterostructures involving multiferroics. Using the SrRuO$_3$/SrMnO$_3$ superlattice as a model system, density-functional calculations are here performed to verify the two proposals. This proof-of-principle calculation provides convincing evidence that qualitatively supports both proposals.
Based on the spin-pumping theory and first-principles calculations, the spin-mixing conductance (SMC) is theoretically studied for Pt/Permalloy (Ni$_{81}$Fe$_{19}$, Py) junctions. We evaluate the SMC for ideally clean Pt/Py junctions and examine the effects of interface randomness. We find that the SMC is generally enhanced in the presence of interface roughness as compared to the ideally clean junctions. Our estimated SMC is in good quantitative agreement with the recent experiment for Pt/Py junctions. We propose possible routes to increase the SMC in Pt/Py junctions by depositing a foreign magnetic metal layer in Pt, offering guidelines for designing the future spintronic devices.
