Journal Article

Controlling the helicity of light by electrical magnetization switching

Lagarde, Delphine, Lindemann, Markus, Xu, Bo, Rojas-Sánchez, Juan-Carlos, Lu, Yuan, Marie, Xavier, Dainone, Pambiang Abel, Cong, Guangwei, Bouché, Alexandre, Pigeat, Philippe, Žutić, Igor, George, Jean-Marie, Vergnat, Michel, Beard, Matthew C., Prestes, Nicholas Figueiredo, Lemaitre, Aristide, Wang, Jian-Ping, Devaux, Xavier, Jaffrès, Henri, Han, Xiufeng, Rinnert, Hervé, Ma, Tianyi, Gerhardt, Nils C., Renucci, Pierre, Lombez, Laurent, Morassi, Martina, Chen, Tongxin, Mangin, Stephane, Stoffel, Mathieu

2024

Overview

Controlling the intensity of emitted light and charge current is the basis of transferring and processing information 1 . By contrast, robust information storage and magnetic random-access memories are implemented using the spin of the carrier and the associated magnetization in ferromagnets 2 . The missing link between the respective disciplines of photonics, electronics and spintronics is to modulate the circular polarization of the emitted light, rather than its intensity, by electrically controlled magnetization. Here we demonstrate that this missing link is established at room temperature and zero applied magnetic field in light-emitting diodes 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 – 7 , through the transfer of angular momentum between photons, electrons and ferromagnets. With spin–orbit torque 8 , 9 , 10 – 11 , a charge current generates also a spin current to electrically switch the magnetization. This switching determines the spin orientation of injected carriers into semiconductors, in which the transfer of angular momentum from the electron spin to photon controls the circular polarization of the emitted light 2 . The spin–photon conversion with the nonvolatile control of magnetization opens paths to seamlessly integrate information transfer, processing and storage. Our results provide substantial advances towards electrically controlled ultrafast modulation of circular polarization and spin injection with magnetization dynamics for the next-generation information and communication technology 12 , including space–light data transfer. The same operating principle in scaled-down structures or using two-dimensional materials will enable transformative opportunities for quantum information processing with spin-controlled single-photon sources, as well as for implementing spin-dependent time-resolved spectroscopies. The helicity of light from a light-emitting diode can be electrically controlled by spin–orbit torque effects, enabling a seamless integration of magnetization dynamics with photonics.

• Publisher: Nature Publishing Group UK,Nature Publishing Group
• Subject: 142/126 / 639/301/119/1001 / 639/624/1020 / Angular momentum / ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS / Circular polarization / Communication / Data processing / Data transfer (computers) / electrically controlled magnetization / Electromagnetism / Electron spin / Electrons / Engineering Sciences / Ferromagnetism / Helicity / Humanities and Social Sciences / Information processing / Information storage / Information transfer / Lasers / Light emitting diodes / Luminous intensity / Magnetic fields / Magnetic switching / Magnetization / multidisciplinary / Photonics / Photons / Physics / Polarization / Polarization (spin alignment) / Quantum phenomena / Random access memory / Room temperature / Science / Science (multidisciplinary) / Semiconductors / space-light data transfer / Spin dynamics / spin-orbit torque / Spintronics / Two dimensional materials