Intrinsic magnetoresistance in metal films on ferromagnetic insulators

Abstract

We predict a magnetoresistance induced by the interfacial Rashba spin-orbit coupling in normal metal|ferromagnetic insulator bilayer. It depends on the angle between current and magnetization directions identically to the "spin Hall magnetoresistance" mechanism caused by a combined action of spin Hall and inverse spin Hall effects. Due to the identical phenomenology it is not obvious whether the magnetoresistance reported by Nakayama et al. is a bulk metal or interface effect. The interfacial Rashba induced magnetoresistance may be distinguished from the bulk metal spin Hall magnetoresistance by its dependence on the metal film thickness.