Large spin-orbit coupling in carbon nanotubes

G.A. Steele (), F. Pei, E.A. Laird, J.M. Jol, H.B. Meerwaldt and L.P. Kouwenhoven
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G.A. Steele: Kavli Institute of NanoScience, Delft University of Technology, PO Box 5046, Delft 2600GA, The Netherlands
F. Pei: Kavli Institute of NanoScience, Delft University of Technology, PO Box 5046, Delft 2600GA, The Netherlands
E.A. Laird: Kavli Institute of NanoScience, Delft University of Technology, PO Box 5046, Delft 2600GA, The Netherlands
J.M. Jol: Kavli Institute of NanoScience, Delft University of Technology, PO Box 5046, Delft 2600GA, The Netherlands
H.B. Meerwaldt: Kavli Institute of NanoScience, Delft University of Technology, PO Box 5046, Delft 2600GA, The Netherlands
L.P. Kouwenhoven: Kavli Institute of NanoScience, Delft University of Technology, PO Box 5046, Delft 2600GA, The Netherlands

Nature Communications, 2013, vol. 4, issue 1, 1-7

Abstract: Abstract It has recently been recognised that the strong spin-orbit interaction present in solids can lead to new phenomena, such as materials with non-trivial topological order. Although the atomic spin-orbit coupling in carbon is weak, the spin-orbit coupling in carbon nanotubes can be significant due to their curved surface. Previous works have reported spin-orbit couplings in reasonable agreement with theory, and this coupling strength has formed the basis of a large number of theoretical proposals. Here we report a spin-orbit coupling in three carbon nanotube devices that is an order of magnitude larger than previously measured. We find a zero-field spin splitting of up to 3.4 meV, corresponding to a built-in effective magnetic field of 29 T aligned along the nanotube axis. Although the origin of the large spin-orbit coupling is not explained by existing theories, its strength is promising for applications of the spin-orbit interaction in carbon nanotubes devices.

Date: 2013
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2584

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