Basically the prevailing theory here and among left wing academics is that the US didn't want the Soviets to dictate the terms of the peace with Germany. Most of the area taken from the Nazi's by the USSR was left with socialist governments, while the areas occupied by the US and UK had the same system of government that existed prior (and sometimes during) the Nazi occupation restored post war.
A similar thing actually played out in the Pacific. Stalin had promised to invade Japan 3 months after the end of the war in Europe, which is precisely what he did - two days AFTER the US dropped the first nuke. It is theorized that one of the motivators of using the bomb was to draw the war to a close before the USSR launched a land invasion of Japan. In the end USSR occupied all of Manchuria, the North island of Japan and the Northern part of Korea. The partition of Korea was actually very hastily drawn up by the US, they were worried the Soviets would hold the entire peninsular before they had drawn up a proposal. The 38th parallel is actually far further North than the US believed they would have been capable of meeting the Soviets.