Dislocations and torsion in graphene and related systems

A continuum model to study the influence of dislocations on the electronic properties of condensed matter systems is described and analyzed. The model is based on a geometrical formalism that associates a density of dislocations with the torsion tensor and uses the technique of quantum field theory in curved space. When applied to two-dimensional systems with Dirac points like graphene we find that dislocations couple in the form of vector gauge fields similar to these arising from curvature or elastic strain. We also describe the ways to couple dislocations to normal metals with a Fermi surface. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.