2025/04/24 by Bonasera, Federico, Falci, Giuseppe A., Paladino, Elisabetta +1
#FOS: Physical sciences #Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci) #Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall) #Quantum Physics (quant-ph) #Superconductivity (cond-mat.supr-con)
paper · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2504.17517
We study a graphene Josephson junction where the inner graphene layer is subjected to spin-orbit coupling by proximity effect. This could be achieved, for example, by growing the graphene layer on top of a transition metal dichalcogenide, such as WS2. Here, we focus on the ballistic, wide, and short junction limits and study the effects of the spin-orbit interaction on the supercurrent. In particular, we analyze the current phase relation using an analytical approach based on the continuum model. We find combinations of types of spin-orbit coupling that significantly suppress the supercurrent by opening a gap in the graphene band structure. At the same time, other combinations enhance it, acting as an effective spin-valley resolved chemical potential. Moreover, we find that a strong Rashba spin-orbit coupling leads to a junction with a highly voltage tunable harmonic content.