Spin-current diode with a ferromagnetic semiconductor

Diode is a key device in electronics: the charge current can flow through the device under a forward bias, while almost no current flows under a reverse bias. Here we propose a corresponding device in spintronics: the spin-current diode, in which the forward spin current is large but the reversed one is negligible. We show that the lead/ferromagnetic quantum dot/lead system and the lead/ferromagnetic semiconductor/lead junction can work as spin-current diodes. The spin-current diode, a low dissipation device, may have important applications in spintronics, as the conventional charge-current diode does in electronics.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

The spin-polarized ν=0\nu=0 state of graphene: a spin superconductor

We study the spin-polarized $\nu=0$ Landau-level state of graphene. Due to the electron-hole attractive interaction, electrons and holes can bound into pairs. These pairs can then condense into a spin-triplet superfluid ground state: a spin superconductor state. In this state, a gap opens up in the edge bands as well as in the bulk bands, thus it is a charge insulator, but it can carry the spin current without dissipation. These results can well explain the insulating behavior of the spin-polarized $\nu=0$ state in the recent experiments.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Theory for electric dipole superconductivity with an application for bilayer excitons

Exciton superfluid is a macroscopic quantum phenomenon in which large quantities of excitons undergo the Bose-Einstein condensation. Recently, exciton superfluid has been widely studied in various bilayer systems. However, experimental measurements only provide indirect evidence for the existence of exciton superfluid. In this article, by viewing the exciton in a bilayer system as an electric dipole, we provide a general theory for the electric dipole superconductivity, and derive the London-type and Ginzburg-Landau-type equations for the electric dipole superconductors. By using these equations, we discover the Meissner-type effect and the electric dipole current Josephson effect. These effects can provide direct evidence for the formation of the exciton superfluid state in bilayer systems and pave new ways to drive an electric dipole current.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, 1 Supplementary Informatio

Topological Imbert-Fedorov shift in Weyl semimetals

The Goos-H\"anchen (GH) shift and the Imbert-Fedorov (IF) shift are optical phenomena which describe the longitudinal and transverse lateral shifts at the reflection interface, respectively. Here, we report the GH and IF shifts in Weyl semimetals (WSMs) - a promising material harboring low energy Weyl fermions, a massless fermionic cousin of photons. Our results show that GH shift in WSMs is valley-independent which is analogous to that discovered in a 2D relativistic material - graphene. However, the IF shift has never been explored in non-optical systems, and here we show that it is valley-dependent. Furthermore, we find that the IF shift actually originates from the topological effect of the system. Experimentally, the topological IF shift can be utilized to characterize the Weyl semimetals, design valleytronic devices of high efficiency, and measure the Berry curvature

Persistent spin current in a spin-orbit coupling/normal hybrid ring

We investigate the equilibrium property of a mesoscopic ring with spin orbit (SO) interaction. It is well known that for a normal mesoscopic ring threaded by a magnetic flux, the electron acquires a Berry phase that induces the persistent (charge) current. Similarly, the spin of electron acquires a spin Berry phase traversing the ring with SO interaction. It is this spin Berry phase that induces a persistent spin current. To demonstrate its existence, we calculate the persistent spin current without accompanying charge current in the normal region in a hybrid mesoscopic ring. We point out that this persistent spin current describes the real spin motion and can be observed experimentally.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

The transport properties of Floquet topological superconductors at the transition from the topological phase to the Anderson localized phase

The Floquet topological superconducting state is a nonequilibrium time-periodic state hosting Majorana fermions. We study its transport properties by using the Kitaev model with time-periodic incommensurate potentials, which experiences phase transition from the Floquet topological superconducting phase to the Anderson localized phase with increasing driving strength. We study both the real time dynamics of the current and the non-analytic behavior of the tunneling conductance at the transition. Especially, we find that the tunneling conductance changes continuously at the transition, being a finite value in the presence of Floquet Majorana fermions, but dropping to zero as the Majorana fermions vanish. For a special choice of parameters, the Majorana fermions revive at larger driving strength, accompanied by the revival of conductances.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure