Coupled spin and pseudomagnetic field in graphene nanoribbons

Abstract

A pseudomagnetic field becomes an experimental reality after the observation of zero-field Landau level-like quantization in strained graphene, but it is not expected that the time-reversal symmetric pseudomagnetic fields will have any effect on the spin degree of freedom of the charge carriers. Here, we demonstrate that spin-orbit coupling (SOC) could act as a bridge between the pseudomagnetic field and spin. In quantum spin Hall (QSH) states, the direction of the spin of edge states is tied to their direction of motion because of the SOC. The pseudomagnetic field affects the clockwise and counterclockwise edge currents of the QSH states and consequently lifts the degenerate edge states of opposite spin orientation. Because of opposite signs of the pseudomagnetic field in two valleys of graphene, the one-dimensional charge carriers at the two opposite edges have different group velocities, and in some special cases, the edge states can only propagate at one edge of the nanoribbon, and the group velocity at the other edge becomes zero.