Magneto-transport and magneto-optical properties of ferromagnetic (III,Mn)V semicondcutors: a review

Abstract

Rapid developments in material research of metallic ferromagnetic (III,Mn)V semiconductors over the past few years have brought a much better understanding of these complex materials. We review here some of the main developments and current understanding of the bulk properties of these systems within the metallic regime, focusing principally on the magneto-transport and magneto-optical properties. Although several theoretical approaches are reviewed, the bulk of the review uses the effective Hamiltonian approach, which has proven useful in describing many of these properties namely in (Ga,Mn)As and (In,Mn)As. The model assumes a ferromagnetic coupling between Mn d-shell local moments mediated by holes in the semiconductor valence band.