Current resonances in graphene with time dependent potential barriers

Abstract

A method is derived to solve the massless Dirac-Weyl equation describing electron transport in a mono-layer of graphene with a scalar potential barrier U(x,t), homogeneous in the y-direction, of arbitrary x- and time dependence. Resonant enhancement of both electron backscattering and currents, across and along the barrier, is predicted when the modulation frequencies satisfy certain resonance conditions. These conditions resemble those for Shapiro-steps of driven Josephson junctions. Surprisingly, we find a non-zero y-component of the current for carriers of zero momentum along the y-axis.