Giant spin Hall effect in two-dimensional monochalcogenides

One of the most exciting properties of two dimensional materials is their sensitivity to external tuning of the electronic properties, for example via electric field or strain. Recently discovered analogues of phosphorene, group-IV monochalcogenides (MX with M = Ge, Sn and X = S, Se, Te), display several interesting phenomena intimately related to the in-plane strain, such as giant piezoelectricity and multiferroicity, which combine ferroelastic and ferroelectric properties. Here, using calculations from first principles, we reveal for the first time giant intrinsic spin Hall conductivities (SHC) in these materials. In particular, we show that the SHC resonances can be easily tuned by combination of strain and doping and, in some cases, strain can be used to induce semiconductor to metal transition that makes a giant spin Hall effect possible even in absence of doping. Our results indicate a new route for the design of highly tunable spintronics devices based on two-dimensional materials.