Large Spin-To-Charge Conversion at the Two-Dimensional Interface of Transition-Metal Dichalcogenides and Permalloy

Spin-to-charge conversion is an essential requirement for the implementation of spintronic devices. Recently, monolayers (MLs) of semiconducting transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have attracted considerable interest for spin-to-charge conversion due to their high spin-orbit coupling and lack of inversion symmetry in their crystal structure. However, reports of direct measurement of spin-to-charge conversion at TMD-based interfaces are very much limited. Here, we report on the room-temperature observation of a large spin-to-charge conversion arising from the interface of Ni80Fe20 (Py) and four distinct large-area (similar to 5 x 2 mm(2)) ML TMDs, namely, MoS2, MoSe2, WS2, and WSe2. We show that both spin mixing conductance and the Rashba efficiency parameter (lambda(IREE)) scale with the spin-orbit coupling strength of the ML TMD layers. The lambda(IREE) parameter is found to range between -0.54 and -0.76 nm for the four ML TMDs, demonstrating a large spin-to-charge conversion. Our findings reveal that the TMD/ferromagnet interface can be used for efficient generation and detection of spin current, opening new opportunities for novel spintronic devices.

Automated summary

The interface between TMD and ferromagnetic materials exhibits a large spin-to-charge conversion, which can be used for efficient generation and detection of spin current, opening up new opportunities for novel spintronic devices.