Exciton spin relaxation in diluted magnetic semiconductor Zn1-xMnxSe/CdSe superlattices: Effect of spin splitting and role of longitudinal optical phonons

Exciton spin relaxation in diluted magnetic semiconductor (DMS) structures based on ZnMnSe is closely examined as a function of exciton spin splitting in an external magnetic field. A drastic increase in spin relaxation is observed when exciton spin splitting exceeds the longitudinal optical (LO) phonon energy. Direct experimental evidence has been provided from (1) spin injection from the DMS to an adjacent nonmagnetic quantum well that can be modulated by the LO-assisted spin relaxation and (2) hot exciton photoluminescence within the DMS where a spin flip is accompanied by the emission of one LO phonon.