Carrier spin relaxation in (Ga,Mn)As at room temperature

Abstract

In this paper, the excitation energy density dependence of carrier spin relaxation is studied at room temperature for the as-grown and annealed (Ga,Mn)As samples using femtosecond time-resolved pump-probe Kerr spectroscopy. It is found that spin relaxation lifetime of electrons lengthens with increasing excitation energy density for both samples, and the annealed (Ga,Mn)As has shorter carrier recombination and electron spin relaxation lifetimes as well as larger Kerr rotation angle than the as-grown (Ga,Mn)As under the same excitation condition, which shows that DP mechanism is dominant in the spin relaxation process for (Ga,Mn)As at room temperature. The enhanced ultrafast Kerr effect in the annealed (Ga,Mn)As shows the potential application of the annealed (Ga,Mn)As in ultrafast all-optical spin switches, and also provides a further evidence for the p-d exchange mechanism of the ferromagnetic origin of (Ga,Mn)As.