Perovskite oxide heterojunction for Rashba-Dresselhaus assisted antiferromagnetic spintronics

Abstract

A major impediment towards realizing technologies based on the emerging principles of antiferromagnetic spintronics is the shortage of suitable materials. In this paper, we propose a design of polar|nonpolar heterostructure of perovskite oxides, where a single unit cell of SrIrO3 is sandwiched between a thin film of LaAlO3 and a substrate of SrTiO3. Our calculations within the framework of density functional theory + Hubbard U + spin-orbit coupling reveal a two-dimensional conducting layer with electron and hole pockets at the interface, exhibiting strong anisotropic Rashba-Dresselhaus effect along with noncollinear antiferromagnetism, indicating the possibility to realizing a spin-orbit torque. An insightful physical model for anisotropic Rashba-Dresselhaus effect nicely interprets our results, providing an estimate for the Rashba-Dresselhaus coefficients and illustrating pseudospin orientation. We also observe proximity-induced prominent Rashba-like effect for Ti-3d empty bands. Our results suggest that the heterostructure may possess the essential ingredients for antiferromagnetic spintronics, deserving experimental verification.