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Pure spin currents – i.e., directed flows of spin angular momentum – are a fascinating manifestation of spin physics in the solid state. Pure spin currents can propagate not only in metals and semiconductors, but also in magnetically ordered insulators. This makes a whole  new  set  of  materials  and  material  combinations  interesting  for  spin  transport experiments and spin-electronic devices. Moreover,   in   the   last   decade,   robust experimental  schemes  for  the  generation  and/or  detection  of  pure  spin  currents  have been established, sparking intense research activities. In ferromagnet/normal metal thin film heterostructures for example, pure spin currents can be generated by means of spin pumping, or via the application of thermal gradients in the so-called spin Seebeck effect.
An  elegant  concept  for  detecting  spin  currents  relies  on  the  inverse  spin  Hall  effect: Because of spin-orbit coupling, a pure spin current induces a charge current, which can be  measured  using  conventional  electronics.  The  interplay  between  spin  and  charge transport furthermore gives rise to the so-called spin Hall magnetoresistance (SMR) effect [5], and allows for the electrical quantification of magnon diffusion lengths in magnetic
insulator/normal metal nanostructures. In the lecture, I will give an introduction to pure spin current transport and spin Hall physics, and then address recent highlights as well as  interesting  perspectives  for  pure  spin  current  based  experiments  and  spin  current circuits.