Large pure spin current generation in metallic nanostructures

Abstract

Pure spin current corresponds to the flow of spin angular momentum without associating any net charge current, and possesses potential to be incorporated in special functional and high-performance devices based on nonlocal spin injection. To utilize pure spin current in practical devices, it is imperative to increase the spin generation efficiency. In this article we discuss two special configurations of nonlocal devices, known as multi-terminal injector and nanopillar devices, which possess immense potential to overcome the Joule heating problem, the key bottleneck to enhance the pure spin current generation. We also demonstrate magnetization switching of a nanosized ferromagnet due to pure spin current injection in a nanopillar-based nonlocal device.