Perspectives of spin-valley locking devices

Valleytronics is an emerging field of research which utilizes the valley degree of freedom to encode information. However, it is technically nontrivial to produce a stable valley polarization and to achieve efficient control and manipulation of valleys. Spin-valley locking refers to the coupling between spin and valley degrees of freedom in the materials with large spin-orbit coupling (SOC) and enables the manipulation of valleys indirectly through controlling spins. Here, we review the recent advances in spin-valley locking physics and outline possible device implications. In particular, we focus on the spin-valley locking induced by SOC and external electric field in certain two-dimensional materials with inversion symmetry and demonstrate the intriguing switchable valley-spin polarization, which can be utilized to design the promising electronic devices, namely, valley-spin valves and logic gates.