Magnetism and ferroelectricity

Electronic structure of the NiMnSb-semiconductor (110) interface

S. V. Eremeev^ab, A. V. Bakulin^a, S. E. Kul'kova<sup>ab

a</sup> Institute of Strength Physics and Materials Science, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Tomsk
^b Tomsk State University

Abstract: The electronic structure and magnetic properties of the (110) interface between the half-metallic Heusler alloy NiMnSb and semiconductors with different configurations of contact atoms have been calculated in terms of the density functional theory. It has been shown that spin polarization depends substantially on the configuration of atoms at the contacts. The nature of the interface states at the contacts under consideration has been analyzed. A nearly 100% spin polarization is obtained for the configuration with nickel and antimony, which in the alloy occupy the corresponding sites of the anion and the cation in the semiconductor. The evaluation of the adhesion energy at the interfaces has demonstrated that contacts with a maximum spin polarization also have the highest energy and are energetically favorable and stable.

Received: 05.02.2009
Accepted: 12.05.2009

 English version: Physics of the Solid State, 2010, 52:1, 105–111

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