Magnon and Phonon Thermometry with Inelastic Light Scattering

Spin caloritronics investigates the interplay between the transport of spin and heat. In the spin Seebeck effect, a thermal gradient across a magnetic material generates a spin current. A temperature difference between the energy carriers of the spin and lattice subsystems, namely the magnons and phonons, is necessary for such thermal nonequilibrium generation of spin current. Inelastic light scattering is a powerful method that can resolve the individual temperatures of magnons and phonons. In this review, we discuss the thermometry capabilities of inelastic light scattering for measuring optical and acoustic phonons, as well as magnons. A scattering spectrum offers three temperature sensitive parameters: frequency shift, linewidth, and integrated intensity. We discuss the temperatures measured via each of these parameters for both phonon and magnons. Finally, we discuss inelastic light scattering experiments that have examined the magnon and phonon temperatures in thermal nonequilibrium which are particularly relevant to spin caloritronic phenomena