An alternative mechanism for current-induced antisymmetric lateral edge spin accumulations in ballistic two-dimensional electron gases

Abstract: In this Letter an alternative mechanism is proposed for current-induced antisymmetric lateral edge spin accumulations in thin strips of ballistic two-dimensional electron gases with intrinsic spin–orbit coupling. In this mechanism, the occurrence of current-induced antisymmetric lateral edge spin accumulations in a semiconductor strip is not due to a transverse spin current but originates from the combined action of the spin–orbit coupling, the boundary confinement on both lateral edges of the strip, and the time-reversal symmetry-breaking caused by the longitudinal charge current circulating through the strip. The results obtained in this Letter indicate that, the occurrence of current-induced antisymmetric lateral edge spin accumulations in a thin strip of a spin–orbit coupled two-dimensional electronic system does not need to be associated necessarily with a transverse spin current in principle. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]