Semiconductor Spintronics and Quantum Computation

The manipulation of electric charge in bulk semiconductors and their heterostructures forms the basis of virtually all contemporary electronic and opto-electronic devices. Recent studies of spin-dependent phenomena in semiconductors have now opened the door to technological possibilities that harness the spin of the electron in semiconductor devices. In addition to providing spin-dependent analogies that extend existing electronic devices into the realm of semiconductor "spintronics," the spin degree of freedom also offers prospects for fundamentally new functionality within the quantum domain, ranging from storage to computation. It is anticipated that the spin degree of freedom in semiconductors will play a crucial role in the development of information technologies in the 21st century. This book brings together a team of experts to provide an overview of emerging concepts in this rapidly developing field. The topics range from spin transport and injection in semiconductors and their heterostructures to coherent processes and computation in semiconductor quantum structures and microcavities.