Spin accumulation without spin current

Abstract

The spin Hall (SH) effect is a phenomenon in which the spin current flows perpendicular to an applied electric field and causes the spin accumulation at the boundaries. However, in the presence of spin-orbit couplings, the spin current is not well defined. Here, we calculate the spin response to an electric-field gradient, which naturally appears at the boundaries. We derive a generic formula using the Bloch wave functions and the phenomenological relaxation time. We also calculate the response for the uniform Rashba model with $\delta$-function nonmagnetic disorder within the first-order Born approximation and corresponding vertex corrections. We find the nonzero spin accumulation, although the SH conductivity exactly vanishes.