Electronic transitions in GdN band structure

abstract

Using the near-infrared (NIR) absorbance spectroscopy, electronic transitions and spin polarization of the GdN epitaxial film have been investigated; and the GdN epitaxial film was grown by a reactive rf sputtering technique. The GdN film exhibited three broad bands in the NIR frequency regimes; and those bands are attributable primarily to the minority and majority spin transitions at the X-point and an indirect transition along the Gamma-X symmetric direction of GdN Brillouin zone. We experimentally observe a pronounced red-shift of the indirect band gap when cooling down below the Curie temperature which is ascribed to the orbital-dependent coulomb interactions of Gd-5dxy electrons, which tend to push-up the N-2p bands. On the other hand, we have evaluated the spin polarization of 0.17 (+/- 0.005), which indicates that the GdN epitaxial film has almost 100% spin-polarized carriers. Furthermore, the experimental result of GdN electronic transitions are consistent with the previous reports and are thus well-reproduced. The Arrott plots evidenced that the Curie temperature of GdN film is 36K and the large spin moment is explained by the nitrogen vacancies and the intra-atomic exchange interaction. (C) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.

keywords

SPECTROSCOPY; JUNCTIONS

subject category

Physics

authors

Vidyasagar, R; Kita, T; Sakurai, T; Ohta, H

our authors

Share this project:

Related Publications

We use cookies for marketing activities and to offer you a better experience. By clicking “Accept Cookies” you agree with our cookie policy. Read about how we use cookies by clicking "Privacy and Cookie Policy".