Spin injection and detection using perpendicularly magnetized Mn/Co bilayers grown on GaAs via all electrical methods

Abstract

The electrical spin injection and detection in perpendicularly magnetized Mn/Co/n-GaAs junction was investigated using a non-local method. Clear non-local spin-valve signals and Hanle effect signals were observed at 77 K, providing direct evidence of the injection and detection of perpendicularly polarized spins through all electrical methods. The magnitude of the spin-valve signal was one order of magnitude smaller than that observed in a reference sample with an in-plane magnetized CoFe due to the low spin polarization of the ultrathin Mn/Co electrodes. It was found that the spin polarization at the interface between Mn/Co electrode and n+-GaAs had a relatively weak bias-current dependence in contrast to that at CoFe/n+-GaAs interface. The estimated spin lifetime of perpendicular spins injected from the Mn/Co bilayer into n-GaAs was approximately 1.9 ns at 77 K. This value is similar to that of in-plane spins injected from CoFe, indicating that the spin lifetime was not strongly dependent on the spin orientation in the bulk GaAs channel.