Relaxation Process of Spin-Polarized Quasiparticles in a Superconducting Nb Wire.

A mesoscopic multi-terminal superconducting Nb strip with a spin injection terminal has been developed. We investigate the influence of spin polarization on the relaxation process of the quasiparticle in the superconducting Nb. The position dependence of the nonlocal voltage provides the quasiparticle relaxation length. The relaxation length for the spin-polarized quasiparticle is found to show a 12.5% increase from that for the un-polarized quasiparticle. This demonstration opens a new avenue for utilization of the spin current in a superconducting device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]