Piezoelectric Strain Control of Terahertz Spin Current

Abstract

AbstractElectrical control of photogenerated terahertz (THz) spin current pulses from a spintronic emitter has been at the forefront for the development of scalable, cost‐efficient, wideband optospintronic devices. Artificially combined ferroelectric and ferromagnet heterostructure provides the potential avenue to deterministically control the phase of THz spin current pulse through piezoelectric strain. Here, the electric field‐mediated piezoelectric strain control of photogenerated THz spin current pulse from a multiferroic spintronic emitter is demonstrated. The phase reversal of the THz spin current pulse is obtained from the combined effect of piezoelectric strain and a small magnetic field applied opposite to the initial magnetization of the ferromagnet. The piezoelectric strain‐controlled phase switching of THz spin current thus opens a door to develop efficient strain engineered scalable on‐chip THz spintronics devices.