Litcius/Paper detail

Nonlocal electrical detection of reciprocal orbital Edelstein effect

Weiguang Gao, Liyang Liao, Hironari Isshiki, Nico Budai, Junyeon Kim, Hyun‐Woo Lee, Kyung‐Jin Lee, Dongwook Go, Yuriy Mokrousov, Shinji Miwa, Y. Otani

2025Nature Communications9 citationsDOIOpen Access PDF

Abstract

The orbital Edelstein effect and orbital Hall effect, where a charge current induces a nonequilibrium orbital angular momentum, offer a promising method for efficiently manipulating nanomagnets using light elements. Despite extensive research, understanding the Onsager's reciprocity of orbital transport remains elusive. In this study, we experimentally demonstrate the Onsager's reciprocity of orbital transport in an orbital Edelstein system by utilizing nonlocal measurements. This method enables the precise identification of the chemical potential generated by orbital accumulation, avoiding the limitations associated with local measurements. We observe that the direct and inverse orbital-charge conversion processes produce identical electric voltages, confirming Onsager's reciprocity in orbital transport. Additionally, we find that the orbital decay length, approximately 100 nm at room temperature, is independent of the Cu thickness and decreases with decreasing temperature, revealing a distinct contrast to the spin transport behavior. Our findings provide valuable insights into both the reciprocity of the charge-orbital interconversion and the nonlocal correlation of orbital degree of freedom, laying the ground for orbitronics devices with long-range interconnections.

Topics & Concepts

ReciprocalPhysicsComputer sciencePhilosophyLinguisticsTopological Materials and PhenomenaMagnetic properties of thin filmsPhase-change materials and chalcogenides