Spin-dependent electron-electron interaction in Rashba materials

We review the effects of the pair spin-orbit interaction (PSOI) in Rashba materials. The PSOI is the electron-electron interaction component that depends on the spin and momentum of the electrons. Being produced by the Coulomb fields of interacting electrons, it exists already in vacuum, but becomes orders of magnitude larger in materials with the giant Rashba effect. The main nontrivial feature of the PSOI is that it is attractive for electrons in certain spin configurations tied to their momentum and competes with the Coulomb repulsion of the electrons. Under certain conditions attainable in modern low-dimensional structures the PSOI prevails. The resulting attraction between electrons leads to the formation of bound electron pairs, the binding energy of which can be controlled by electrical means. In many-electron systems the PSOI results in the instabilities of the uniform ground state with respect to the density fluctuations, which develop on different spatial scales, depending on the geometry of the electric fields that produce the PSOI. If the PSOI is not too strong the electronic system is stable, but its collective excitations reveal the highly unusual spin-charge structure and spectrum, which manifest themselves in the frequency dependence of the dynamic conductivity.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figures. This article was prepared for the special issue of Journal of Experimental and Theoretical Physics dedicated to the 95th birthday of Professor E.I. Rashb