Spin diffusion in a superconductor through mesoscopic ferromagnet/superconductor interfaces

Abstract

We measured the suppression of the superconductivity in a mesoscopic Al wire in proximity contact with an overlaid ferromagnetic Co wire. We estimated the resultant spin diffusion length of spin-polarized quasiparticles in the superconductor, which appeared to be related to the pair condensation of quasiparticles through opposite spin channels. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.