Conversion of Heat into Charge Current by the Spin Wave Anomalous Nernst Effect

Abstract: A novel process of spin conversion from a temperature gradient to a transverse voltage is addressed in this paper, viz. the anomalous Nernst effect (ANE) in a ferromagnetic metal. We report that an additional voltage is superposed on the conventional anomalous Nernst voltage in FePt crystalline thin films. The dynamics of the local magnetization is modulated by the heat current and excites spin waves. These generate a conduction electron spin current via s-d coupling, which flows along the temperature gradient, and the spin current is converted to a Nernst voltage by the inverse spin Hall effect.