Electron-electron scattering and transport properties of spin-orbit coupled electron gas Article Swipe
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· 2020
· Open Access
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· DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.102.155411
· OA: W3045697689
We calculate the electrical and thermal conductivity of a two-dimensional electron gas with strong spin--orbit coupling in which the scattering is dominated by electron--electron collisions. Despite the apparent absence of Galilean invariance in the system, the two-particle scattering does not affect the electrical conductivity above the band-crossing point where both helicity bands are filled. Below the band-crossing point where one helicity band is empty, switching on the electron--electron scattering leads only to a limited decrease of the electrical conductivity, so that its high-temperature value is independent of the scattering intensity. In contrast to this, thermal conductivity is not strongly affected by the spin-orbit coupling and exhibits only a kink as the Fermi level passes through the band-crossing point.