Spin-dependent transport induced by magnetization in zigzag graphene nanoribbons coupled to one-dimensional leads

We study spin transport in a zigzag graphene nanoribbon sample with two ferromagnetic strips deposited on the two sides of the ribbon. A tight-binding Hamiltonian was adopted to describe the sample connected to two one-dimensional leads. Our theoretical study shows that the resonance peaks of conductance for the spin-up and spin-down electrons are separated for the parallel configuration of the ferromagnetic strips, while they are not separated for the case of antiparallel configuration. This means that giant magnetoresistance can be produced at particular energies by altering the configurations of the ferromagnetic strips, and the device can be designed as a spin filter. (condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties)