Efficient thermal spin injection using CoFeAl nanowires and its application

This study demonstrates that a highly spin-polarized ferromagnetic CoFeAl electrode with a favorable band structure has excellent properties for thermal spin injection. The spin-dependent Seebeck coefficient at room temperature is approximately 70 microV/K, which facilitates a highly efficient generation of the spin current from the heat. The generation efficiency of the thermal spin current is approximately 100 times greater than that for a conventional ferromagnetic injector at room temperature. It is shown that the electrical spin accumulation voltage is strongly modulated by the thermal spin injection and that the magnetization direction is indirectly detected by the thermal spin injection.