The magneto-gyrotropic photogalvanic and spin-galvanic effects are observed in (0001)-oriented GaN/AlGaN heterojunctions excited by terahertz radiation. We show that free-carrier absorption of linearly or circularly polarized terahertz radiation in low-dimensional structures causes an electric photocurrent in the presence of an in-plane magnetic field. Microscopic mechanisms of these photocurrents based on spin-related phenomena are discussed. Properties of the magneto-gyrotropic and spin-galvanic effects specific for hexagonal heterostructures are analyzed.
We show that free-carrier (Drude) absorption of both polarized and unpolarized terahertz radiation in quantum well (QW) structures causes an electric photocurrent in the presence of an in-plane magnetic field. Experimental and theoretical analysis ev
idences that the observed photocurrents are spin-dependent and related to the gyrotropy of the QWs. Microscopic models for the photogalvanic effects in QWs based on asymmetry of photoexcitation and relaxation processes are proposed. In most of the investigated structures the observed magneto-induced photocurrents are caused by spin-dependent relaxation of non-equilibrium carriers.
The resonant circular photogalvanic effect is observed in wurtzite (0001)-oriented GaN low-dimensional structures excited by infrared radiation. The current is induced by angular momentum transfer of photons to the photoexcited electrons at resonant
inter-subband optical transitions in a GaN/AlGaN heterojunction. The signal reverses upon the reversal of the radiation helicity or, at fixed helicity, when the propagation direction of the photons is reversed. Making use of the tunability of the free-electron laser FELIX we demonstrate that the current direction changes by sweeping the photon energy through the intersubband resonance condition, in agreement with theoretical considerations.
We report on the study of the linear and circular magneto-gyrotropic photogalvanic effect (MPGE) in GaAs/AlGaAs quantum well structures. Using the fact that in such structures the Lande-factor g* depends on the quantum well (QW) width and has differe
nt signs for narrow and wide QWs, we succeeded to separate spin and orbital contributions to both MPGEs. Our experiments show that, for most quantum well widths, the PGEs are mainly driven by spin-related mechanisms, which results in a photocurrent proportional to the g* factor. In structures with a vanishingly small g* factor, however, linear and circular MPGE are also detected, proving the existence of orbital mechanisms.
We develop a theory of circular photogalvanic effect (CPGE) for classically high photon energies which exceed the electron scattering rate but are small compared to the average electron kinetic energy. In this frequency range one can calculate the CP
GE by using two different approaches. In the fully quantum-mechanical approach we find the photocurrent density by applying Fermis golden rule for indirect intraband optical transitions with virtual intermediate states both in the conduction and valence bands. In the framework of the semiclassical approach, we apply a generalized Boltzmann equation with accounts for the Berry-curvature induced anomalous velocity, side jumps and skew scattering. The calculation is carried out for a wurtzite symmetry crystal. Both methods yield the same results for the CPGE current demonstrating consistency between the two approaches and applicability of the semiclassical theory for the description of nonlinear high-frequency transport.
We report on the observation of the magneto-photogalvanic effect (MPGE) due to inter-subband transitions in (001)-oriented GaAs quantum wells. This effect is related to the gyrotropic properties of the structures. It is shown that inter-subband absor
ption of linearly polarized radiation may lead to spin-related as well as spin independent photocurrents if an external magnetic field is applied in the plane of the quantum well. The experimental results are analyzed in terms of the phenomenological theory and microscopic models of MPGE based on either asymmetric optical excitation or asymmetric relaxation of carriers in k-space. We observed resonant photocurrents not only at oblique incidence of radiation but also at normal incidence demonstrating that conventionally applied selection rules for the inter-subband optical transitions are not rigorous.