Spin-filtering and charge- and spin-switching effects in a quantum wire with periodically attached stubs

Abstract

Spin-dependent electron transport in a periodically stubbed quantum wire in the presence of Rashba spin-orbit interaction (SOI) is studied via the nonequilibrium Green's function method combined with the Landauer-Buttiker formalism. The coexistence of spin filtering, charge and spin switching are found in the considered system. The mechanism of these transport properties is revealed by analyzing the total charge density and spin-polarized density distributions in the stubbed quantum wire. Furthermore, periodic spin-density islands with high polarization are also found inside the stubs, owing to the interaction between the charge density islands and the Rashba SOI-induced effective magnetic field. The proposed nanostructure may be utilized to devise an all-electrical multifunctional spintronic device.