Publication Date:
2014-11-01
Description:
Nature Physics 10, 835 (2014). doi:10.1038/nphys3105 Authors: J. M. Riley, F. Mazzola, M. Dendzik, M. Michiardi, T. Takayama, L. Bawden, C. Granerød, M. Leandersson, T. Balasubramanian, M. Hoesch, T. K. Kim, H. Takagi, W. Meevasana, Ph. Hofmann, M. S. Bahramy, J. W. Wells & P. D. C. King Methods to generate spin-polarized electronic states in non-magnetic solids are strongly desired to enable all-electrical manipulation of electron spins for new quantum devices. This is generally accepted to require breaking global structural inversion symmetry. In contrast, here we report the observation from spin- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy of spin-polarized bulk states in the centrosymmetric transition-metal dichalcogenide WSe2. Mediated by a lack of inversion symmetry in constituent structural units of the bulk crystal where the electronic states are localized, we show how spin splittings up to 0.5 eV result, with a spin texture that is strongly modulated in both real and momentum space. Through this, our study provides direct experimental evidence for a putative locking of the spin with the layer and valley pseudospins in transition-metal dichalcogenides, of key importance for using these compounds in proposed valleytronic devices.
Print ISSN:
1745-2473
Electronic ISSN:
1745-2481
Topics:
Physics
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