  We study the pseudo spin-orbital (SO) effects experienced by massive Dirac
particles in graphene, which can potentially be of a larger magnitude compared
to the conventional Rashba SO effects experienced by particles in a 2DEG
semiconductor heterostructure. In order to generate a uniform vertical pseudo
SO field, we propose an artificial atomic structure, consisting of a graphene
ring and a charged nanodot at the center which produces a large radial electric
field. In this structure, a large pseudo SO coupling strength can be achieved
by accelerating the Dirac particles around the ring, due to the small energy
gap in graphene and the large radial electric field emanating from the charged
nanodot. We discuss the theoretical possibility of harnessing the pseudo SO
effects in mesoscopic applications, e.g. pseudo spin relaxation and switching.
