Model for electron spin resonance in STM noise

We propose a model to account for the observed ESR-like signal at the Larmor frequency in the current noise scanning tunnel microscope (STM) experiments identifying spin centers on various substrates. The theoretical understanding of this phenomenon, which allows for single spin detection on surfaces at room temperature, is not settled for the experimentally relevant case that the tip and substrate are not spin polarized. Our model is based on a direct tip-substrate tunneling in parallel with a current flowing via the spin states. We find a sharp signal at the Larmor frequency even at high temperatures, in good agreement with experimental data. We also evaluate the noise in presence of an ac field near resonance and predict splitting of the signal into a Mollow triplet. Fil: Caso, Alvaro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Max-Planck-Institut fur Physik komplexer Systeme; Alemania Fil: Horovitz, Baruch. Ben Gurion University of The Negev; Israel Fil: Arrachea, Liliana del Carmen. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires; Argentina