Large extrinsic spin Hall effect in Au-Cu alloys by extensive atomic disorder scattering

Spin Hall angle, which denotes the conversion efficiency between spin and charge current, is a key parameter in the pure spin current phenomenon. The search for materials with large spin Hall angle is indeed important for scientific interest and potential application in spintronics. Here the large enhanced spin Hall effect (SHE) of Au-Cu alloy is reported by investigating the spin Seebeck effect, spin Hall anomalous Hall effect, and spin Hall magnetoresistance of the Y3Fe5O12 (YIG)/AuxCu1-x hybrid structure over the full composition. At the near equiatomic Au-Cu composition with maximum atomic disorder scattering, the spin Hall angle of the Au-Cu alloy increases by two to three times together with a moderate spin diffusion length in comparison with Au. The longitudinal spin Seebeck voltage and the spin Hall magnetoresistance ratio also increase by two to three times. More importantly, no evidence of anomalous Hall effect is observed in all YIG/Au-Cu samples, in contrast to the cases of other giant SHE materials Pt(Pd), Ta, and W. This behavior makes Au-Cu free from any suspicion of the magnetic proximity effect involved in the hybrid structure, and thus the Au-Cu alloy can be an ideal material for pure spin current study.