Spin filtering with EuO: Insight from a complex band structure

Spin-filter tunneling is a promising way to create highly-spin-polarized currents. So far the understanding of the spin-filtering effect has been limited to a free-electron description based on the spin-dependent tunneling barrier height. In this work we employ density-functional calculations to explore the complex bands of EuO as a representative ferromagnetic insulator used in spin-filter tunneling experiments and show that the mechanism of spin filtering deviates significantly from the standard free-electron picture and involves effects associated with the symmetry of spin-dependent evanescent states and the dependence of the decay constant on the transverse wave vector. We demonstrate the importance of the multiorbital band structure with an indirect band gap for spin-filter tunneling. By analyzing the symmetry of the complex bands and the decay rates for different wave vectors and energies we draw conclusions about spin-filter efficiency of EuO. Our results provide a new insight into spin-filter tunneling and may help to design tunnel junctions with enhanced spin polarization.