P-shell carrier assisted dynamic nuclear spin polarization in single quantum dots at zero external magnetic field

Repeated injection of spin-polarized carriers in a quantum dot (QD) leads to the polarization of nuclear spins, a process known as dynamic nuclear spin polarization (DNP). Here, we report the observation of p-shell carrier assisted DNP in single QDs at zero external magnetic field. The nuclear field - measured by using the Overhauser shift of the singly charged exciton state of the QDs - continues to increase, even after the carrier population in the s-shell saturates. This is also accompanied by an abrupt increase in nuclear spin buildup time as p-shell emission overtakes that of the s shell. We attribute the observation to p-shell electrons strongly altering the nuclear spin dynamics in the QD, supported by numerical simulation results based on a rate equation model of coupling between electron and nuclear spin system. Dynamic nuclear spin polarization with p-shell carriers could open up avenues for further control to increase the degree of nuclear spin polarization in QDs.