The two-dimensional electron systems in graphene and in topological insulators are described by massless Dirac equations. Although the two systems have similar Hamiltonians, they are polar opposites in terms of spin-orbit coupling strength. We briefly review the status of efforts to achieve long spin relaxation times in graphene with its weak spin-orbit coupling, and to achieve large current-induced spin polarizations in topological-insulator surface states that have strong spin-orbit coupling. We also comment on differences between the magnetic responses and dilute-moment coupling properties of the two systems, and on the pseudospin analog of giant magnetoresistance in bilayer graphene.
@article{arxiv.1308.3428,
title = {Spintronics and Pseudospintronics in Graphene and Topological Insulators},
author = {D. A. Pesin and A. H. MacDonald},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1308.3428},
year = {2013}
}