ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on fundamental physics issues as well as the promises and limitations of the actual materials from an experimentalist’s perspective. It addresses developments in the general area of group IV dilute magnetic semiconductor (DMS). The control of the electron spin in semiconductor devices, specifically “spin injection” across interfaces, is presently at a conceptual stage. There are two ways to realize spin injection: fabricate a ferromagnetic-metal/semiconductor heterostructure, or use a dilute magnetic semiconductor as the spin source. Applications of DMS require that they be magnetic at room temperature. The magneto-resistance of the post-annealed samples is typical of a metallic DMS system and can be attributed to a reduction of spin disorder scattering in the presence of a magnetic field. The magnetic properties and magnetoresistance are moreover strongly dependent on the Mn substitutional fraction in the crystalline host matrix.
