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Giant spin rotation under quasiparticle-photoelectron conversion: Joint effect of sublattice interference and spin-orbit coupling

Ferdinand Kuemmeth and Emmanuel I. Rashba
Phys. Rev. B 80, 241409(R) – Published 16 December 2009

Abstract

Spin- and angular-resolved photoemission spectroscopy is a basic experimental tool for unveiling spin polarization of electron eigenstates in crystals. We prove, by using spin-orbit coupled graphene as a model, that photoconversion of a quasiparticle inside a crystal into a photoelectron can be accompanied with a dramatic change in its spin polarization, up to a total spin flip. This phenomenon is typical of quasiparticles residing away from the Brillouin-zone center and described by higher rank spinors and results in exotic patterns in the angular distribution of photoelectrons.

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  • Received 7 October 2009

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.80.241409

©2009 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Ferdinand Kuemmeth1 and Emmanuel I. Rashba1,2,3

  • 1Department of Physics, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
  • 2Center for Nanoscale Systems, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
  • 3Department of Physics, Loughborough University, Leicestershire LE11 3TU, United Kingdom

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Issue

Vol. 80, Iss. 24 — 15 December 2009

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