Spintronics is not just a new type of electronics in the 21th century [1,2] but provides a variety of possibilities for energy conversion [3]. The spin motive-force converts magnetic energy into electricity [4], and spin Seebeck effect does heat to electricity via spin current [5]. These conversion mechanisms are called “power spintronics”: a new challenge in physics, in which “spin current”, i.e., the flow of electron spin, is a key concept. Here, I would like to introduce the physics of spin current and to present “power spintronics” and its future.

References:
[1] Concept in Spin Electronics, ed. S. Maekawa (Oxford University Press, 2006).
[2] Spin Current, eds. S. Maekawa et al. (Oxford University Press, 2012).
[3] S. Maekawa et al., J. Phys. Soc. Jpn. 82, 102002 (1-23) (2013).
[4] S.E. Barnes and S. Maekawa, Phys. Rev. Lett. 98, 246601 (2007).
[5] K. Uchida et al., Nature 455, 778 (2008).