Theory of Graphene Raman Spectroscopy

Abstract: Raman spectroscopy plays a key role in studies of graphene and related carbon systems. Graphene is perhaps the most promising material of recent times for many novel applications, including electronics. In this paper, the traditional and well established Kramers-Heisenberg-Dirac (KHD) Raman scattering theory (1925-1927) is extended to crystalline graphene for the first time. It demands different phonon production mechanisms and phonon energies than does the popular "double resonance" Raman scattering model. The latter has never been compared to KHD. Within KHD, phonons are produced instantly along with electrons and holes, in what we term an electron-hole-phonon triplet, which does not suffer Pauli blocking. A new mechanism for double phonon production we name "transition sliding" explains the brightness of the 2D mode and other overtones, as a result of linear (Dirac cone) electron dispersion. Direct evidence for sliding resides in hole doping experiments performed in 2011 \cite{chenCrommie}. Whole ranges of electronic transitions are permitted and may even constructively interfere for the same laser energy and phonon q, explaining the dispersion, bandwidth, and strength of many two phonon Raman bands. Graphene's entire Raman spectrum, including dispersive and fixed bands, missing bands not forbidden by symmetries, weak bands, overtone bands, Stokes anti-Stokes anomalies, individual bandwidths, trends with doping, and D-2D band spacing anomalies emerge naturally and directly in KHD theory.