Spin currents in Rashba altermagnets: From equilibrium to nonlinear regimes
Phys. Rev. B 112, 155422 – Published 16 October, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/jqg2-fpk3
Abstract
We investigate equilibrium (background), linear, and nonlinear spin currents in two-dimensional Rashba spin-orbit coupled altermagnet systems, using a modified spin current operator that includes anomalous velocity arising from nonzero Berry curvature. The background spin current, stemming from spin-orbit coupling and modulated by the altermagnet term (), exhibits in-plane polarization, increases linearly with Fermi energy (), and is enhanced by both the altermagnet () and the Rashba parameter (). Linear spin current is always transverse with out-of-plane polarization and can be viewed as a spin Hall current, primarily driven by band velocity, with enabling a band-induced contribution [previously absent in simple Rashba systems ()]. This highlights the altermagnet system as a promising source of spin Hall current generation. For linear spin Hall current, its band contribution's magnitude increases linearly with , while the magnitude of the anomalous component saturates at higher . Further, the magnitude of the spin Hall current is enhanced by but reduced by . Nonlinear spin currents feature both longitudinal and transverse components with in-plane polarization. Both the nonlinear longitudinal spin current from band velocity and the nonlinear transverse spin current from anomalous velocity initially decrease with before saturating at higher . Importantly, reduces these currents while enhances them. Meanwhile, the nonlinear transverse current from band velocity increases and then saturates with , enhanced by and showing nonmonotonic variation with . These findings highlight the tunability of spin current behavior through Rashba and altermagnet parameters, offering insights for spintronic applications.