Graphene switches: Research group makes it to first base
Wednesday, November 28, 2012 - 09:02
in Physics & Chemistry
Ever since graphene was first isolated a few years ago, this quasi-two-dimensional network made up of a single layer of carbon atoms has been considered the magic material. Not only is graphene mechanically highly resilient, it also provides an interesting basis for new spintronic components that exploit the magnetic moment of conduction electrons. Now researchers have successfully managed to increase the graphene conduction electrons' spin-orbit coupling by a factor of 10,000 -- enough to allow them to construct a switch that can be controlled via small electric fields.