---
OA_place: repository
OA_type: green
_id: '19810'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: Engineering and enhancing the breaking of inversion symmetry in solids—that
    is, allowing electrons to differentiate between ‘up’ and ‘down’—is a key goal
    in condensed-matter physics and materials science because it can be used to stabilize
    states that are of fundamental interest and also have potential practical applications.
    Examples include improved ferroelectrics for memory devices and materials that
    host Majorana zero modes for quantum computing1,2. Although inversion symmetry
    is naturally broken in several crystalline environments, such as at surfaces and
    interfaces, maximizing the influence of this effect on the electronic states of
    interest remains a challenge. Here we present a mechanism for realizing a much
    larger coupling of inversion-symmetry breaking to itinerant surface electrons
    than is typically achieved. The key element is a pronounced asymmetry of surface
    hopping energies—that is, a kinetic-energy-coupled inversion-symmetry breaking,
    the energy scale of which is a substantial fraction of the bandwidth. Using spin-
    and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we demonstrate that such a strong
    inversion-symmetry breaking, when combined with spin–orbit interactions, can mediate
    Rashba-like3,4 spin splittings that are much larger than would typically be expected.
    The energy scale of the inversion-symmetry breaking that we achieve is so large
    that the spin splitting in the CoO2- and RhO2-derived surface states of delafossite
    oxides becomes controlled by the full atomic spin–orbit coupling of the 3d and
    4d transition metals, resulting in some of the largest known Rashba-like3,4 spin
    splittings. The core structural building blocks that facilitate the bandwidth-scaled
    inversion-symmetry breaking are common to numerous materials. Our findings therefore
    provide opportunities for creating spin-textured states and suggest routes to
    interfacial control of inversion-symmetry breaking in designer heterostructures
    of oxides and other material classes.
article_processing_charge: No
article_type: letter_note
arxiv: 1
author:
- first_name: Veronika
  full_name: Sunko, Veronika
  id: 23cb1cf6-2c7a-11ef-91a4-f72fc19f20b3
  last_name: Sunko
  orcid: 0000-0003-2724-3523
- first_name: H.
  full_name: Rosner, H.
  last_name: Rosner
- first_name: P.
  full_name: Kushwaha, P.
  last_name: Kushwaha
- first_name: S.
  full_name: Khim, S.
  last_name: Khim
- first_name: F.
  full_name: Mazzola, F.
  last_name: Mazzola
- first_name: L.
  full_name: Bawden, L.
  last_name: Bawden
- first_name: O. J.
  full_name: Clark, O. J.
  last_name: Clark
- first_name: J. M.
  full_name: Riley, J. M.
  last_name: Riley
- first_name: D.
  full_name: Kasinathan, D.
  last_name: Kasinathan
- first_name: M. W.
  full_name: Haverkort, M. W.
  last_name: Haverkort
- first_name: T. K.
  full_name: Kim, T. K.
  last_name: Kim
- first_name: M.
  full_name: Hoesch, M.
  last_name: Hoesch
- first_name: J.
  full_name: Fujii, J.
  last_name: Fujii
- first_name: I.
  full_name: Vobornik, I.
  last_name: Vobornik
- first_name: A. P.
  full_name: Mackenzie, A. P.
  last_name: Mackenzie
- first_name: P. D. C.
  full_name: King, P. D. C.
  last_name: King
citation:
  ama: Sunko V, Rosner H, Kushwaha P, et al. Maximal Rashba-like spin splitting via
    kinetic-energy-coupled inversion-symmetry breaking. <i>Nature</i>. 2017;549(7673):492-496.
    doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/nature23898">10.1038/nature23898</a>
  apa: Sunko, V., Rosner, H., Kushwaha, P., Khim, S., Mazzola, F., Bawden, L., … King,
    P. D. C. (2017). Maximal Rashba-like spin splitting via kinetic-energy-coupled
    inversion-symmetry breaking. <i>Nature</i>. Springer Nature. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/nature23898">https://doi.org/10.1038/nature23898</a>
  chicago: Sunko, Veronika, H. Rosner, P. Kushwaha, S. Khim, F. Mazzola, L. Bawden,
    O. J. Clark, et al. “Maximal Rashba-like Spin Splitting via Kinetic-Energy-Coupled
    Inversion-Symmetry Breaking.” <i>Nature</i>. Springer Nature, 2017. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/nature23898">https://doi.org/10.1038/nature23898</a>.
  ieee: V. Sunko <i>et al.</i>, “Maximal Rashba-like spin splitting via kinetic-energy-coupled
    inversion-symmetry breaking,” <i>Nature</i>, vol. 549, no. 7673. Springer Nature,
    pp. 492–496, 2017.
  ista: Sunko V, Rosner H, Kushwaha P, Khim S, Mazzola F, Bawden L, Clark OJ, Riley
    JM, Kasinathan D, Haverkort MW, Kim TK, Hoesch M, Fujii J, Vobornik I, Mackenzie
    AP, King PDC. 2017. Maximal Rashba-like spin splitting via kinetic-energy-coupled
    inversion-symmetry breaking. Nature. 549(7673), 492–496.
  mla: Sunko, Veronika, et al. “Maximal Rashba-like Spin Splitting via Kinetic-Energy-Coupled
    Inversion-Symmetry Breaking.” <i>Nature</i>, vol. 549, no. 7673, Springer Nature,
    2017, pp. 492–96, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/nature23898">10.1038/nature23898</a>.
  short: V. Sunko, H. Rosner, P. Kushwaha, S. Khim, F. Mazzola, L. Bawden, O.J. Clark,
    J.M. Riley, D. Kasinathan, M.W. Haverkort, T.K. Kim, M. Hoesch, J. Fujii, I. Vobornik,
    A.P. Mackenzie, P.D.C. King, Nature 549 (2017) 492–496.
date_created: 2025-06-10T09:13:08Z
date_published: 2017-09-28T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2025-06-10T11:55:09Z
day: '28'
doi: 10.1038/nature23898
extern: '1'
external_id:
  arxiv:
  - '1708.03887'
  pmid:
  - '28959958'
intvolume: '       549'
issue: '7673'
language:
- iso: eng
main_file_link:
- open_access: '1'
  url: https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.1708.03887
month: '09'
oa: 1
oa_version: Preprint
page: 492-496
pmid: 1
publication: Nature
publication_identifier:
  eissn:
  - 1476-4687
  issn:
  - 0028-0836
publication_status: published
publisher: Springer Nature
quality_controlled: '1'
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
title: Maximal Rashba-like spin splitting via kinetic-energy-coupled inversion-symmetry
  breaking
type: journal_article
user_id: 2DF688A6-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
volume: 549
year: '2017'
...