Strain Field Enhancement of Kondo Effect in Graphene

The Kondo physics of screening of an impurity's magnetic moment by electrons in doped graphene has been predicted to exhibit peculiar features due to the linear density of states. However, experimental identification of this phenomenon remains controversial, mainly due to the interaction with substrates and measuring probes. Here, we propose to use mechanical out-of-plane deformations in graphene to recognize the unique fingerprints that the Kondo regime exhibits. The resulting inhomogeneous strain in the deformation is known to produce sublattice symmetry breaking that appears as alternating changes in the local density of states (LDOS). Since the Kondo effect is sensitive to the LDOS sampled by the impurity, these oscillating patterns are mirrored by dramatic changes in the Kondo temperature for impurities positioned at different lattice sites. The changes, which are suitable to be detected with local probes such as scanning tunneling microscope, are unique to the material and can be used to identify the setting of a Kondo regime.