Spin-orbit coupling assisted by flexural phonons in graphene

H. Ochoa, A. H. Castro Neto, V. I. Fal'ko, F. Guinea

Published 2012-09-19, updated 2012-12-11Version 2

We analyze the couplings between spins and phonons in graphene. We present a complete analysis of the possible couplings between spins and flexural, out of plane, vibrations. From tight-binding models we obtain analytical and numerical estimates of their strength. We show that dynamical effects, induced by quantum and thermal fluctuations, significantly enhance the spin-orbit gap.