Influences of spin accumulation on the intrinsic spin Hall effect in two-dimensional electron gases with Rashba spin-orbit coupling

Abstract

In a two-dimensional electron gas with Rashba spin-orbit coupling, the external electric field may cause a spin Hall current in the direction perpendicular to the electric field. This effect was called the intrinsic spin Hall effect. In this paper, we investigate the influences of spin accumulation on this intrinsic spin Hall effect. We show that due to the existence of boundaries in a real sample, the spin Hall current generated by the intrinsic spin Hall effect will cause spin accumulation near the edges of the sample, and in the presence of spin accumulation, the spin Hall conductivity will not have a universal value. The influences of spin accumulation on the intrinsic spin Hall effect in narrow strips of two-dimensional electron gases with Rashba spin-orbit coupling are investigated in detail.