Large Interfacial Rashba Interaction Generating Strong Spin-Orbit Torques in Atomically Thin Metallic Heterostructures.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 37524333.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1021/acs.nanolett.2c05091 and PMC identifier 10416352.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC-ND.
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Abstract
The hallmark of spintronics has been the ability of spin-orbit interactions to convert a charge current into a spin current and vice versa, mainly in the bulk of heavy metal thin films. Here, we demonstrate how a light metal interface profoundly affects both the nature of spin-orbit torques and its efficiency in terms of damping-like (<i>H</i><sub>DL</sub>) and field-like (<i>H</i><sub>FL</sub>) effective fields in ultrathin Co films. We measure unexpectedly <i>H</i><sub>FL</sub>/<i>H</i><sub>DL</sub> ratios much larger than 1 by inserting a nanometer-thin Al metallic layer in Pt|Co|Al|Pt as compared to a similar stacking, including Cu as a reference. From our modeling, these results evidence the existence of large Rashba interaction at the Co|Al interface generating a giant <i>H</i><sub>FL</sub>, which is not expected from a metallic interface. The occurrence of such enhanced torques from an interfacial origin is further validated by demonstrating current-induced magnetization reversal showing a significant decrease of the critical current for switching.