DFG Kolloquium im SPP 1538 "Spin Caloric Transport"

The Senate of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) has announced the establishment of a new Priority Programme, entitled “Spin Caloric Transport”. The programme is designed to run for six years.

Spin polarized currents in magnetic nanostructures give rise to novel spin caloric effects. These effects modify thermal transport, magneto-resistance and possibly even magnetic states. To understand the observed effects an extension of thermodynamic laws including the spin is inevitable. It is long known that heat and charge currents are closely linked to each other by, e.g., the Wiedemann-Franz law which connects thermal and electrical conductivities. The coupling leads to thermoelectric effects with prominent examples being the Seebeck effect and its inverse, the Peltier effect, which may be described through the Onsager relations. These effects are used in devices such as thermocouples and thermo-electric cooling devices, respectively. It became clear only recently that these long-known thermoelectric phenomena need to be re-considered by including the spin. This avenue is expected to generate completely new spin-related properties in the solid state.

The hypothesis that in magnetic systems spin entropy can be created, manipulated and transported by non-equilibrium charge and heat currents is compelling. Non-equilibrium magneto-caloric transport effects such as the Nernst-Ettingshausen effects will face novel spin and anomalous counterparts. Spin transport phenomena in the presence of a thermal gradient or the lateral transport of heat via magnetic excitations need to be studied.

The aim of the Priority Programme “Spin Caloric Transport (SpinCaT)” is to develop the new research field of caloric effects in spin transport. The research programme will focus on four priority areas.

Submitted proposals should address at least one of the following topics:
spin caloric effects and spin mediated heat transport in planar geometry
thermal spin-based conductivities across interfaces in nanopatterned magnetic devices
spin currents induced by large temperature gradients
materials for spin caloric applications
To focus the activities, materials to be investigated should show strong magnetic interactions such as magnetic order or large spin orbit coupling.
Semiconductor material development and bulk materials will not be considered.
The aim of the programme is to explore effects at room temperature.
While some key experiments will have to be carried out at low temperatures, a clear strategy to reach spin-caloric room temperature effects should be given.