Geometric spin–orbit coupling and chirality-induced spin selectivity

Abstract

We report a new type of spin–orbit coupling (SOC) called geometric SOC. Starting from the relativistic theory in curved space, we derive an effective nonrelativistic Hamiltonian in a generic curve embedded into flat three dimensions. The geometric SOC is O(m −1), in which m is the electron mass, and hence much larger than the conventional SOC of O(m −2). The energy scale is estimated to be a hundred meV for a nanoscale helix. We calculate the current-induced spin polarization in a coupled-helix model as a representative of the chirality-induced spin selectivity. We find that it depends on the chirality of the helix and is of the order of 0.01ℏ per nm when a charge current of 1 μA is applied.