Spin photocurrents in zigzag phosphorene nanoribbons: From infrared to ultraviolet

Abstract

Using the self-consistent non-equilibrium Green’s function model and the mean-field Hubbard approximation, we studied the possibility of inducing the spin-photovoltaic effects in zigzag phosphorene nanoribbons. We numerically showed that an applied electric field could induce a spin-semiconducting behavior with anisotropic and localized band structures around the Fermi energy in the antiferromagnetic zigzag phosphorene nanoribbons. Moreover, a tunable energy gap with an electric field could induce a spin photocurrent in a wide range of photon energies. Interestingly, increasing the electric field strength induces the spin-valve effect from terahertz to infrared irradiation. Furthermore, ferromagnetic zigzag phosphorene nanoribbons reveal a spin-dependent photoresponsivity, which is induced by infrared to ultraviolet frequencies. These results could enhance photovoltaic effects with a generation of the spin photocurrent in phosphorene junctions.