Coexistence of Brillouin and Van Vleck spin exchange in Zn1−xMnxSe/Zn1−yFeySe spin superlattice structures

Abstract

We have studied a new type of semiconductor quantum well system in which the carrier-ion exchange interactions are determined by the spin of the carrier. The samples consist of alternating layers of Zn1−xMnxSe and Zn1−yFeySe grown by molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE). At zero field, the carriers initially interact randomly with both transition metal species. When a magnetic field is applied, the excitonic wave functions are increasingly localized in one or the other of the magnetic layers according to their spin state as the competing spin exchange interactions define the confining potential. The spin components of the heavy hole exciton are subsequently dominated by different exchange interactions as revealed by their temperature and field dependence: the behavior of the spin-down component (−3/2,−1/2) is described by exchange interactions of the carriers with the Mn2+ ions and exhibits Brillouin paramagnetic behavior, while the spin-up component (+3/2,+1/2) is dominated by interactions with Fe2+ ions and exhibits Van Vleck paramagnetism. These structures are thus characterized by an initial competition and eventual coexistence of Brillouin- and Van Vleck-like paramagnetic behavior for the exciton.