Materials

Temperature dependence of charge-to-spin conversion in rhombohedral (110) bismuth thin film

K. Tatsuoka, N. Fukumoto, S. Sakamoto, S. Miwa, Y. Fuseya, J. Fujimoto, R. Ohshima, J. Puebla, Y. Ando, M. Shiraishi

Featured July 16, 2026

AI-generated analysis — This is SciGrove's AI interpretation of the paper, not peer-reviewed content. Always refer to the original paper.

Simply

By studying how charge-to-spin conversion changes with temperature in bismuth thin films, the authors discovered that skew scattering is the main way spin currents are generated, driven by the Elliott-Yafet mechanism.

In depth

The paper investigates the temperature-dependent behavior of charge-to-spin conversion in bismuth thin films, revealing that both spin Hall conductivity and spin diffusion length increase at lower temperatures. This finding strongly suggests that spin scattering is governed by the Elliott-Yafet mechanism, and the spin Hall effect is primarily driven by skew scattering in this material.

Key Takeaways

1
The study demonstrates that spin Hall conductivity and spin diffusion length in rhombohedral (110) bismuth thin films significantly increase as temperature decreases.
2
The observed temperature dependence indicates that the Elliott-Yafet mechanism is the dominant spin relaxation process in Bi(110)R, where spin lifetime is proportional to momentum relaxation time.
3
A linear relationship between spin Hall conductivity and spin diffusion length confirms that skew scattering is the primary mechanism for charge-to-spin conversion in high-purity Bi(110)R samples.

Conceptual Flow

HIGH LEVEL

Methodology (The 'Logic')

Scientists applied electricity and a magnetic field to a special bismuth film and measured how it reacted to understand its hidden spin properties.

Electric Current

Magnetic Field

Temperature Change

Measure Hall Voltage

Spin Hall Strength

Spin Travel Distance

Results (The 'Impact')

They found that as the film got colder, its ability to convert electricity into spin got much stronger, showing a specific type of scattering was in charge.

Lower Temperature

Spin Conversion Increases

Skew Scattering Dominates

Elliott-Yafet Rule

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