  Scattering theory is employed to derive a Landauer-type formula for the spin
and the charge currents, through a finite region where spin-orbit interactions
are effective. It is shown that the transmission matrix yields the spatial
direction and the magnitude of the spin polarization. This formula is used to
study the currents through a tubular two-dimensional electron gas. In this
cylindrical geometry, which may be realized in experiment, the transverse
conduction channels are not mixed (provided that the spin-orbit coupling is
uniform). It is then found that for modest boundary scattering, each step in
the quantized conductance is split into two, and the new steps have a non-zero
spin conductance, with the spin polarization perpendicular to the direction of
the current.
