Past exam of the MPhil in micro- and nanotechnology enterprise course of the University of Cambridge / 2020 / Paper 2 / Section A(ii) / 15 / iii

Spin-polarized injection produces different spin-resolved electrochemical potentials in Cu, ${\mu }_s={\mu }_{\uparrow }-{\mu }_{\downarrow }$. Their imbalance diffuses beyond the charge-current path. Oppositely directed spin-resolved currents can cancel in net charge while transporting spin.

The second Py contact is a spin-selective voltage probe. In a weakly invasive model,Its open-circuit potential adjusts until the total detector charge current vanishes. That potential changes when the detector magnetization reverses relative to the injected spins. Zero detector charge current does not imply zero spin imbalance or zero measured voltage.

Reverse injector current and each electrode's alignment to test the predicted signal symmetries. Remove spin-independent thermoelectric offsets and stray-field Hall contributions. A nonzero voltage alone would not prove spin accumulation.^[ref]