Abstract
We show that in the presence of a three-dimensional (Weyl) spin-orbit coupling, a transverse spin current is generated in response to either a constant spin-independent force or a time-dependent Zeeman field in an arbitrary direction. This effect is the non-Abelian counterpart of the universal intrinsic spin Hall effect characteristic of the two-dimensional Rashba spin-orbit coupling. We quantify the strength of such an omnidirectional spin Hall effect by calculating the corresponding conductivity for fermions and noncondensed bosons. The absence of any kind of disorder in ultracold-atom systems makes the observation of this effect viable.
- Received 30 January 2017
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.95.033635
©2017 American Physical Society