SU(4) Symmetry Breaking and Induced Superconductivity in Graphene Quantum Hall Edges

Abstract

In graphene, the approximate SU(4) symmetry associated with the spin and valley degrees of freedom in the quantum Hall (QH) regime is reflected in the 4-fold degeneracy of graphene's Landau levels (LL's). Interactions and the Zeeman effect break such approximate symmetry and lift the corresponding degeneracy of the LLs. We study how the breaking of the approximate SU(4) symmetry affects the properties of graphene's QH edge modes located in proximity to a superconductor. We show how the lifting of the 4-fold degeneracy qualitatively modifies the transport properties of the QH-superconductor heterojunction. For the zero LL, by placing the edge modes in proximity to a superconductor, it is in principle possible to realize a 1D topological superconductor supporting Majoranas in the presence of sufficiently strong Zeeman field. We estimate the topological gap of such a topological superconductor and relate it to the properties of the QH-superconductor interface.