Dynamical polarizability of graphene beyond the Dirac cone approximation

Abstract

We compute the dynamical polarizability of graphene beyond the usual Dirac cone approximation, integrating over the full Brillouin zone. We find deviations at ℏω=2t (where t is the hopping parameter) which amount to a logarithmic singularity due to the Van Hove singularity and derive an approximate analytical expression. Also at low energies, we find deviations from the results obtained from the Dirac cone approximation which manifest themselves in a peak spitting at arbitrary direction of the incoming wave vector q. Consequences for the plasmon spectrum are discussed.