Intrinsic giant Stark effect of boron-carbon-nitride nanoribbons with zigzag edges

Abstract

Electronic properties of zigzag boron-carbon-nitride (BCN) nanoribbons, where the outermost C atoms on the edges of graphene nanoribbons are replaced by B or N atoms, are theoretically studied using the first-principles calculations. We show that BCN nanoribbons are metallic, since several bands cross the Fermi level. For BCN nanoribbons in a rich H$_2$ environment, the so-called nearly free electron state appears just above the Fermi level because of the intrinsic giant Stark effect due to the internal electric field of a transverse dipole moment. The position of the nearly free electron state can be controlled by applying an electric field parallel to the dipole moment. The hydrogenation of the nitrogen atom is necessary for the appearance of the giant Stark effect in BCN nanoribbons. We also discuss the effect of stacking order on the intrinsic giant Stark effect in bilayer BCN nanoribbons.