Black phosphorus as a bipolar pseudospin semiconductor

Semiconductor devices rely on the charge and spin of electrons, but there is another electronic degree of freedom called pseudospin in a two-level quantum system¹ such as a crystal consisting of two sublattices². A potential way to exploit the pseudospin of electrons in pseudospintronics^3–5 is to find quantum matter with tunable and sizeable pseudospin polarization. Here, we propose a bipolar pseudospin semiconductor, where the electron and hole states have opposite net pseudospin polarization. We experimentally identify such states in anisotropic honeycomb crystal—black phosphorus. By sublattice interference of photoelectrons, we find bipolar pseudospin polarization greater than 95% that is stable at room temperature. This pseudospin polarization is identified as a consequence of Dirac cones merged in the highly anisotropic honeycomb system^6,7. The bipolar pseudospin semiconductor, which is a pseudospin analogue of magnetic semiconductors, is not only interesting in itself, but also might be useful for pseudospintronics.