All-optical measurement of Rashba coefficient in quantum wells

We perform an all-optical spin-dynamic measurement of the Rashba spin-orbit interaction in (110)-oriented GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells under applied electric field. This crystallographic orientation allows us to isolate the Rashba from other contributions, giving precise values of the Rashba coefficient. At low temperature, we find good agreement between our measurements and the k center dot p theory. Unexpectedly, we observe a temperature dependence of the Rashba coefficient that may signify the importance of higher-order terms of the Rashba coupling.