Origins of Valley Current Reversal in Partially Overlapped Graphene Layers

Abstract

Using the tight-binding model, we investigate the valley current of the `low-bi-up' and `low-bi-low' graphene junction, where `low' and `up' are respectively the lower and upper graphene layers extended from the central AB stacking bilayer graphene layer, `bi'. Source and drain electrodes connect with the left and right monolayer regions, respectively, and thus the total current is forced to flow through the interlayer path in the low-bi-up junction. We measure valley current reversal (VCR) using the average of $\frac{1}{2} \sum_{ν=\pm}(T_{ν,-ν}-T_{ν,ν})$ per lateral wave number, where $T_{ν,ν'}$ denotes the electron transmission rate from the left $K_{ν'}$ valley to the right $K_ν$ valley. Without the vertical electric field, the VCR is less than half in both junctions. This VCR is attributed to monolayer--bilayer matching. As the vertical field intensifies, the VCR declines in the low-bi-low junction, but increases to about 0.8 in the low-bi-up junction. This VCR enhancement originates from interlayer matching. Analytic scattering matrixes elucidate these matching effects. Experiments of VCR detection are also proposed.