Transfer-matrix description of heterostructured spintronics terahertz emitters

Abstract

In this work we developed an extension to the transfer-matrix method (TMM) to include a current source term, with the aim of describing both the transmission and emission of THz pulses in spintronics THz emitters. The TMM with source is derived from the Maxwell equations with a volume free current term. This extension to the TMM allows for the study of realistic spintronics THz emitters as multilayers of different materials with different thicknesses. We use this to describe the drop rate of the THz emission amplitude at higher heavy metal layer thicknesses, and use it as a chance to remind that is not related and does not provide information about the spin diffusion length. It is instead the effect of the increase in the parasitic absorption of the generated radiation by the conducting parts of the spintronics THz emitter itself.