No Arabic abstract
Transverse thermoelectric devices produce electric fields perpendicular to an incident heat flux. Classically, this process is driven by the Nernst effect in bulk solids, wherein a magnetic field generates a Lorentz force on thermally excited electrons. The spin Seebeck effect (SSE) also produces magnetization-dependent transverse electric fields. SSE is traditionally observed in thin metallic films deposited on electrically insulating ferromagnets, but the films high resistance limits thermoelectric conversion efficiency. Combining Nernst and SSE in bulk materials would enable devices with simultaneously large transverse thermopower and low electrical resistance. Here we demonstrate experimentally this is possible in composites of conducting ferromagnets (Ni or MnBi) containing metallic nanoparticles with strong spin-orbit interactions (Pt or Au). These materials display positive shifts in transverse thermopower attributable to inverse spin Hall electric fields in the nanoparticles. This more than doubles the power output of the Ni-Pt materials, establishing proof-of-principle that SSE persists in bulk nanocomposites.
We investigate the inverse spin Hall voltage of a 10nm thin Pt strip deposited on the magnetic insulators Y3Fe5O12 (YIG) and NiFe2O4 (NFO) with a temperature gradient in the film plane. We observe characteristics typical of the spin Seebeck effect, although we do not observe a change of sign of the voltage at the Pt strip when it is moved from hot to cold side, which is believed to be the most striking feature of the transverse spin Seebeck effect. Therefore, we relate the observed voltages to the longitudinal spin Seebeck effect generated by a parasitic out-of-plane temperature gradient, which can be simulated by contact tips of different material and heat conductivities and by tip heating. This work gives new insights into the interpretation of transverse spin Seebeck effect experiments, which are still under discussion.
Thermoelectric effects have been applied to power generators and temperature sensors that convert waste heat into electricity. The effects, however, have been limited to electrons to occur, and inevitably disappear at low temperatures due to electronic entropy quenching. Here, we report thermoelectric generation caused by nuclear spins in a solid: nuclear-spin Seebeck effect. The sample is a magnetically ordered material MnCO$_{3}$ having a large nuclear spin ($I = 5/2$) of $^{55}$Mn nuclei and strong hyperfine coupling, with a Pt contact. In the system, we observe low-temperature thermoelectric signals down to 100 mK due to nuclear-spin excitation. Our theoretical calculation in which interfacial Korringa process is taken into consideration quantitatively reproduces the results. The nuclear thermoelectric effect demonstrated here offers a way for exploring thermoelectric science and technologies at ultralow temperatures.
As electrical control of Neel order opens the door to reliable antiferromagnetic spintronic devices, understanding the microscopic mechanisms of antiferromagnetic switching is crucial. Spatially-resolved studies are necessary to distinguish multiple nonuniform switching mechanisms; however, progress has been hindered by the lack of tabletop techniques to image the Neel order. We demonstrate spin Seebeck microscopy as a sensitive, table-top method for imaging antiferromagnetic order in thin films, and apply this technique to study spin-torque switching in NiO/Pt and Pt/NiO/Pt heterostructures. We establish the interfacial antiferromagnetic spin Seebeck effect in NiO as a probe of surface Neel order, resolving antiferromagnetic spin domains within crystalline twin domains. By imaging before and after applying current-induced spin torque, we resolve spin domain rotation and domain wall motion, acting simultaneously. We correlate the changes in spin Seebeck images with electrical measurements of the average Neel orientation through the spin Hall magnetoresistance, confirming that we image antiferromagnetic order.
The spin-Seebeck effect was recently discovered in a metallic ferromagnet and consists of a thermally generated spin distribution that is electrically measured utilizing the inverse spin Hall effect. Here this effect is reproduced experimentally in a ferromagnetic semiconductor, GaMnAs, which allows for flexible design of the magnetization directions, a larger spin polarization, and measurements across the magnetic phase transition. The spin-Seebeck effect in GaMnAs is observed even in the absence of longitudinal charge transport. The spatial distribution of spin-currents is maintained across electrical breaks highlighting the local nature of the effect, which is therefore ascribed to a thermally induced spin redistribution.
We report the nonlocal spin Seebeck effect (nlSSE) in a lateral configuration of Pt/Y$_3$Fe$_5$O$_{12}$(YIG)/Pt systems as a function of the magnetic field $B$ (up to 10 T) at various temperatures $T$ (3 K < $T$ < 300 K). The nlSSE voltage decreases with increasing $B$ in a linear regime with respect to the input power (the applied charge-current squared $I^2$). The reduction of the nlSSE becomes substantial when the Zeeman energy exceeds thermal energy at low temperatures, which can be interpreted as freeze-out of magnons relevant for the nlSSE. Furthermore, we found the non-linear power dependence of the nlSSE with increasing $I$ at low temperatures ($T$ < 20 K), at which the $B$-induced signal reduction becomes less visible. Our experimental results suggest that in the non-linear regime high-energy magnons are over populated than those expected from the thermal energy. We also estimate the magnon spin diffusion length as functions of $B$ and $T$.