Valley and spin accumulation in ballistic and hydrodynamic channels

A theory of the valley and spin Hall effects and resulting accumulation of the valley and spin polarization is developed for ultraclean channels made of two-dimensional semiconductors where the electron mean free path due to the residual disorder or phonons exceeds the channel width. Both ballistic and hydrodynamic regimes of the electron transport are studied. The polarization accumulation is determined by interplay of the anomalous velocity, side-jump and skew scattering effects. In the hydrodynamic regime, where the electron-electron scattering is dominant, the valley and spin current generation and dissipation by the electron-electron collisions are taken into account. The accumulated polarization magnitude and its spatial distribution depend strongly on the transport regime. The polarization is much larger in the hydrodynamic regime as compared to the ballistic one. Significant valley and spin polarization arises in the immediate vicinity of the channel edges due to the side-jump and skew scattering mechanisms.

Automated summary

This study develops a theory of the valley and spin Hall effects and the resulting accumulation of the valley and spin polarization. It investigates the electron transport in both the ballistic and hydrodynamic regimes, taking into account the effects of anomalous velocity, side-jump, and skew scattering. The polarization magnitude and spatial distribution strongly depend on the transport regime, with significantly larger polarization in the hydrodynamic regime and notable valley and spin polarization near the channel edges due to side-jump and skew scattering mechanisms.