Ferroelectric spin orbit devices for ultralow power computing
Résumé
We report a new approach to generate and detect spin currents by exploiting the interplay between spin-orbit effects and ferroelectricity, in two classes of materials: two-Dimensional Electron Gases (2DEGS) appearing at oxides surfaces or interfaces [1], and ferroelectric Rashba semiconductors [2]. While spintronics has traditionally relied on ferromagnetic metals as spin generators and detectors, efficient spin-charge interconversion enabled by spin-orbit coupling in non-magnetic systems has drawn considerable interest in recent years, in a new field called spinorbitronics.Our results demonstrate that the spin-to-charge conversion, due to the spin-orbit coupling, can be controlled in sign in a remanent way, through the ferroelectric polarization. Such a control can lead to the emergence of a ferroelectric spintronics, which could result in a large reduction of the power consumption of non-volatile spintronic devices. It also provides a way for a non-destructive readout of ferroelectric states.