Spin depolarization in semiconductor spin detectors

A brief review is given of our recent experimental results from in-depth investigations of spin depolarization and underlying physical mechanisms within semiconductor spin detectors based on II-VIs (e.g. Zn(Cd)Se quantum wells) and III-Vs (e.g. InGaN quantum wells), which are relevant to applications for spin-LEDs based on ZnMnSe/Zn(Cd)Se and GaMnN/InGaN structures. By employing cw and time-resolved magneto-optical and optical spin orientation spectroscopy in combination with tunable laser excitation, we show that spin depolarization within these spin detectors is very efficient and is an important factor limiting efficiency of spin detection. Detailed physical mechanisms leading to efficient spin depolarization will be discussed.