ScienceDaily: Spintronics News

Opening doors to foldable electronics with inkjet-printed graphene

Mon, 20 May 2013 15:42:42 EDT

Imagine a bendable tablet computer or an electronic newspaper that could fold to fit in a pocket. The technology for these devices may not be so far off, thanks to new research.

Electric and magnetic characteristics of a material which could be used in spintronics: Promising doped zirconia

Fri, 17 May 2013 09:46:46 EDT

Materials belonging to the family of dilute magnetic oxides (DMOs) - an oxide-based variant of the dilute magnetic semiconductors - are good candidates for spintronics applications.

Graphene joins the race to redefine the ampere

Sun, 12 May 2013 14:12:12 EDT

New research could pave the way for redefining the ampere in terms of fundamental constants of physics. The world's first graphene single-electron pump provides the speed of electron flow needed to create a new standard for electrical current based on electron charge.

Flawed diamonds promise sensory perfection: Electron spin extended for incredibly tiny magnetic detectors

Fri, 10 May 2013 10:21:21 EDT

By extending the coherence time of electron states to over half a second, scientists have improved the performance of one of the most potent sensors of magnetic fields on the nanoscale -- a diamond defect no bigger than a pair of atoms called a nitrogen vacancy center. The achievement is important news for nanoscale sensors and quantum computing.

New magnetic graphene may revolutionize electronics

Fri, 10 May 2013 07:55:55 EDT

Researchers have managed to give graphene magnetic properties. The breakthrough opens the door to the development of graphene-based spintronic devices, that is, devices based on the spin or rotation of the electron, and could transform the electronics industry.

Spintronics discovery: Scientists find new 'magic' in magnetic material

Wed, 08 May 2013 17:19:19 EDT

Researchers have reported a fundamental finding that will help advance the development of next-generation electronics called "spintronics."

Graphene quantum dots may someday tell if it will rain on Mars

Wed, 08 May 2013 13:18:18 EDT

Chemical engineers may be able to improve humidity and pressure sensors, particularly those used in outer space.

Use of laser light yields versatile manipulation of a quantum bit

Wed, 01 May 2013 14:51:51 EDT

By using light, researchers have manipulated the quantum state of a single atomic-sized defect in diamond -- the nitrogen-vacancy center -- in a method that not only allows for more unified control than conventional processes, but is more versatile, and opens up the possibility of exploring new solid-state quantum systems.

Best of both worlds: Towards a quantum Internet with combined optical and electrical technique

Wed, 01 May 2013 13:18:18 EDT

Scientists have achieved a breakthrough in quantum science that brings the prospect of a network of ultra-powerful quantum computers -- connected via a quantum internet -- closer to reality. The team is the first to have detected the spin, or quantum state, of a single atom using a combined optical and electrical approach.

Graphene's high-speed seesaw

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:13:13 EDT

A new transistor capable of revolutionizing technologies for medical imaging and security screening has been developed by graphene researchers. The researchers report the first graphene-based transistor with bistable characteristics, which means that the device can spontaneously switch between two electronic states. Such devices are in great demand as emitters of electromagnetic waves in the high-frequency range between radar and infra-red, relevant for applications such as security systems and medical imaging.

One step closer to a quantum computer

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:24:24 EDT

Scientists have succeeded in both initializing and reading nuclear spins, relevant to qubits for quantum computers, at room temperature.

High performance semiconductor spray paint could be a game changer for organic electronics

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:33:33 EDT

Researchers have come up with a novel solution to one of the biggest technological barriers facing the organic semiconductor industry today. They developed a high performance organic semiconductor 'spray paint' that can be applied to large surface areas without losing electric conductivity.

Scientists provide 'new spin' on emerging quantum technologies

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 09:10:10 EDT

Scientists have shed new light on a fundamental area of physics which could have important implications for future electronic devices and the transfer of information at the quantum level.

Quantum computing taps nucleus of single atom

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 13:18:18 EDT

Australian engineers have demonstrated that quantum information can be "written" onto the nucleus of a single atom and "read" out with incredible accuracy. The result was achieved using a silicon chip that can be wired up and operated electronically.

Quantum tricks drive magnetic switching into the fast lane

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 20:03:03 EDT

Researchers in the U.S. and Greece have found a new way to switch magnetism that is at least 1000 times faster than currently used in magnetic memory technologies. Magnetic switching is used to encode information in hard drives, RAM and other computing devices.

Quantum computers coming soon? Metamaterials used to observe giant photonic spin Hall effect

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 15:19:19 EDT

Engineering a unique metamaterial of gold nanoantennas, researchers were able to obtain the strongest signal yet of the photonic spin Hall effect, an optical phenomenon of quantum mechanics that could play a prominent role in the future of computing.

Fantastic flash memory combines graphene and molybdenite

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 14:45:45 EDT

Scientists have combined two materials with advantageous electronic properties -- graphene and molybdenite -- into a flash memory prototype that is very promising in terms of performance, size, flexibility and energy consumption.

Causing collapse: Can one affect an atom's spin just by adjusting the way it is measured?

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 13:30:30 EDT

One of the most basic laws of quantum mechanics is that a system can be in more than one state -- it can exist in multiple realities -- at once. This phenomenon, known as the superposition principle, exists only so long as the system is not observed or measured in any way. As soon as such a system is measured, its superposition collapses into a single state. Thus, we, who are constantly observing and measuring, experience the world around us as existing in a single reality. Researchers now suggest one can affect an atom's spin just by adjusting the way it is measured.

Magnets are chaotic -- and fast -- at the very smallest scale

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 13:24:24 EDT

Using a new type of camera that makes extremely fast snapshots with an extremely high resolution, it is now possible to observe the behavior of magnetic materials at the nanoscale. This behavior is more chaotic than previously thought. The observed behavior changes our understanding of data storage, researchers say.

New microscope measures nanomagnet property vital to 'spintronics'

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 15:12:12 EDT

Researchers have developed a new microscope able to view and measure an important but elusive property of the nanoscale magnets used in an advanced, experimental form of digital memory. The new instrument already has demonstrated its utility with initial results that suggest how to limit power consumption in future computer memories.

Smallest vibration sensor in the quantum world

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 09:59:59 EDT

Carbon nanotubes and magnetic molecules are considered building blocks of future nanoelectronic systems. Their electric and mechanical properties play an important role. Researchers have now found a way to combine both components on the atomic level and to build a quantum mechanical system with novel properties.

Nanoscale spinning magnetic droplets created

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 14:43:43 EDT

Researchers have successfully created a magnetic soliton -- a nano-sized, spinning droplet that was first theorized 35 years ago.

New results indicate that particle discovered at CERN is a Higgs boson

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 10:21:21 EDT

Scientists working with CERN's Large Hadron Collider have presented preliminary new results that further elucidate the particle discovered last year. Having analyzed two and a half times more data than was available for the discovery announcement in July, they find that the new particle is looking more and more like a Higgs boson, the particle linked to the mechanism that gives mass to elementary particles. It remains an open question, however, whether this is the Higgs boson of the Standard Model of particle physics, or possibly the lightest of several bosons predicted in some theories that go beyond the Standard Model.

Surprising control over photoelectrons from a topological insulator

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 11:24:24 EDT

Electrons flowing swiftly across the surface of topological insulators (TIs) are "spin polarized," their spin and momentum locked. The potential to control electron distribution in spintronic devices makes TIs a hot topic in materials science. Now scientists have discovered another useful surprise. Scientists have discovered how a photon beam can flip the spin polarization of electrons emitted from an exciting new material.

Quantum magnets moving along: Scientists observes coherent propagation of a single spin impurity in a chain of ultracold atoms

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 09:54:54 EDT

Many discoveries in physics came as a big surprise -- for example the phenomenon, that some materials loose almost all their electrical resistance at low temperatures, or that others become superconductors at unexpectedly high temperatures. In the past it was mainly due to theoreticians to develop models explaining these unusual properties. Unfortunately it is not possible to have a direct look into a solid state crystal and follow up the motion of charge carriers as this process happens at extremely short time and length scales. Scientists have now observed the coherent propagation of single spin excitations in an ultracold quantum gas of strongly correlated atoms.

Connecting the (quantum) dots: First viable high-speed quantum computer moves closer

Tue, 26 Feb 2013 11:40:40 EST

Scientists have developed a new method that better preserves the units necessary to power lightning-fast electronics, known as qubits. Hole spins, rather than electron spins, can keep quantum bits in the same physical state up to 10 times longer than before, the report finds.

Non-volatile bistable memory circuits for highly energy-efficient CMOS logic systems

Mon, 25 Feb 2013 10:21:21 EST

Non-volatile bistable memory circuits pave the way for highly energy-efficient CMOS logic systems.

Particle physics research sheds new light on possible 'fifth force of nature'

Thu, 21 Feb 2013 19:27:27 EST

In a breakthrough for the field of particle physics, researchers have established new limits on what scientists call "long-range spin-spin interactions" between atomic particles. These interactions have been proposed by theoretical physicists but have not yet been seen. Their observation would constitute the discovery of a "fifth force of nature" (in addition to the four known fundamental forces: gravity, weak, strong and electromagnetic) and would suggest the existence of new particles, beyond those presently described by the Standard Model of particle physics.

New way to probe Earth's deep interior proposed

Thu, 21 Feb 2013 14:39:39 EST

Researchers propose a new technique that might one day reveal in higher detail than ever before the composition and characteristics of the deep Earth. There's just one catch: it relies on a fifth force of nature that has not yet been detected, but which some particle physicists think might exist. If it does, this new force would connect matter at Earth's surface with matter hundreds to thousands of kilometers below, deep in Earth's mantle.

New material interface improves functioning of non-silicon-based electronic devices

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 09:10:10 EST

For the first time, researchers have designed a special material interface that has been shown to add to and to improve the functioning of non-silicon-based electronic devices, such as those used in certain kinds of random access memory. The new method could be used to design improved, more-efficient, multilevel and multifunctional devices, as well as enhanced nanoelectronic components -- such as non-volatile information storage and processing; and spintronic components -- an emerging technology that uses the natural spin of the electron to power devices.

Team creates MRI for the nanoscale: Level comparable to an atomic force microscope

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 16:57:57 EST

An international team of researchers has opened the door for MRI technology at the nanoscale. Using tiny defects in diamonds they sensed the magnetic resonance of molecules to peer down to the level of atoms.

Engineers show feasibility of superfast materials: 'Organic topological insulators' for quantum computing

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 13:24:24 EST

Engineers demonstrated it is feasible to build the first organic materials that conduct electricity on their edges, but act as an insulator inside. These materials, called organic topological insulators, could shuttle information at the speed of light in quantum computers and other high-speed electronic devices.

Semiconductor physics: Taking control of spin

Sun, 03 Feb 2013 14:54:54 EST

Generating and sustaining electrical currents with unique properties for information processing comes closer to reality after a successful theoretical demonstration.

New semiconductor research may extend integrated circuit battery life 10-fold

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 18:44:44 EST

New methods and materials for building integrated circuits can reduce power -- extending battery life to 10 times longer for mobile applications compared to conventional transistors.

Demagnetization by rapid spin transport

Sun, 27 Jan 2013 13:42:42 EST

The fact that an ultrashort laser pulse is capable of demagnetizing a ferromagnetic layer in a jiffy has been well-known since approximately 1996. What we don't yet understand, however, is how exactly this demagnetization works. Now, physicists have shown that it turns out not to be the light pulse itself that prompts demagnetization.

New method of producing nanomagnets for information technology

Wed, 23 Jan 2013 13:36:36 EST

Researchers have found a new method of producing molecular magnets. Their thin layer systems made of cobalt and an organic material could pave the way for more powerful storage media as well as faster and more energy-efficient processors for information processing.

Power spintronics: Producing AC voltages by manipulating magnetic fields

Thu, 03 Jan 2013 13:08:08 EST

Scientists are putting a new spin on their approach to generating electrical current by harnessing a recently identified electromotive force known as spinmotive force, which is related to the field of spintronics that addresses such challenges as improving data storage in computers. Now, a novel application of spintronics is the highly efficient and direct conversion of magnetic energy to electric voltage by using magnetic nanostructures and manipulating the dynamics of magnetization.

Physicists take photonic topological insulators to the next level

Fri, 21 Dec 2012 12:35:35 EST

Researchers have designed a simulation that for the first time emulates key properties of electronic topological insulators. Topological insulators, a state of matter that was only discovered in the past decade, may enable dramatic advances in quantum computing and spintronics.

Synthetic and biological nanoparticles combined to produce new metamaterials

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 10:12:12 EST

Scientists have succeeded in organizing virus particles, protein cages and nanoparticles into crystalline materials. These nanomaterials are important for applications in sensing, optics, electronics and drug delivery.

Physicists make strides in understanding quantum entanglement

Fri, 14 Dec 2012 19:15:15 EST

While some theoretical physicists make predictions about astrophysics and the behavior of stars and galaxies, others work in the realm of the very small, which includes quantum physics. Recently, theoretical physicists have made important strides in studying a concept in quantum physics called quantum entanglement, in which electron spins are entangled with each other.

Engineers develop new energy-efficient computer memory using magnetic materials

Fri, 14 Dec 2012 19:15:15 EST

By using electric voltage instead of a flowing electric current, researchers have made major improvements to an ultra-fast, high-capacity class of computer memory known as magnetoresistive random access memory, or MRAM.

Photonics: Graphene's flexible future

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 08:04:04 EST

Theoretical calculations show graphene’s potential for controlling nanoscale light propagation on a chip.

Uncovering unique properties in a two-dimensional crystal: Potential for optoelectronics, solar cells, valleytronics

Mon, 03 Dec 2012 12:17:17 EST

When the dry lubricant molybdenum disulfide is stripped down to a single layer of atoms, a tightly bound quasi-particle comprised of two electrons and a hole forms with unique spin and valley properties. The charged quasi-particles offer potential use in new solar cells and other electronic devices that are controlled by light or designed to control light, to study what physicists call "many-body interactions"and a new concept of electronics called valleytronics.

Bismuth provides perfect dance partners for quantum computing qubits

Sun, 02 Dec 2012 16:43:43 EST

New research has demonstrated a way to make bismuth electrons and nuclei work together as qubits in a quantum computer.

Graphene switches: Research group makes it to first base

Tue, 27 Nov 2012 11:13:13 EST

Ever since graphene was first isolated a few years ago, this quasi-two-dimensional network made up of a single layer of carbon atoms has been considered the magic material. Not only is graphene mechanically highly resilient, it also provides an interesting basis for new spintronic components that exploit the magnetic moment of conduction electrons. Now researchers have successfully managed to increase the graphene conduction electrons' spin-orbit coupling by a factor of 10,000 -- enough to allow them to construct a switch that can be controlled via small electric fields.

Important progress for spintronics: Spin amplifier works at room temperature

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 12:46:46 EST

A fundamental cornerstone for spintronics that has been missing up until now has been constructed by a team of physicists. A newly developed spin amplifier can be used at room temperature.

Physicists study fast-moving electrons in graphene as a model laboratory for massless particles

Wed, 31 Oct 2012 11:07:07 EDT

A team of physicists from Europe and South Africa has shown that electrons moving randomly in graphene can mimic the dynamics of particles such as cosmic rays, despite travelling at a fraction of their speed.

Breakthrough offers new route to large-scale quantum computing

Fri, 19 Oct 2012 14:12:12 EDT

In a key step toward creating a working quantum computer, researchers have developed a method that may allow the quick and reliable transfer of quantum information throughout a computing device.

Study confirms magnetic properties of silicon nano-ribbons

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 16:08:08 EDT

Nano-ribbons of silicon configured so the atoms resemble chicken wire could hold the key to ultrahigh density data storage and information processing systems of the future, according to new research.

Bus service for qubits: Spin-orbit qubits are right at home in electrical circuits

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 13:18:18 EDT

Superconducting circuit technology meets semiconductor qubit technology to afford a means of moving quantum information from one place to another in future quantum computers.

Topological superconductors: Seeking a robust home for qubits

Tue, 09 Oct 2012 12:17:17 EDT

A new study, taking into account realistic conditions for the first time, shows that Majorana qubits are possible.

Novel materials become multifunctional at ultimate quantum limit

Tue, 25 Sep 2012 09:13:13 EDT

Physicists have examined the lower limits of novel materials called complex oxides and discovered that unlike conventional semiconductors the materials not only conduct electricity, but also develop unusual magnetic properties.

Single-atom writer a landmark for quantum computing

Wed, 19 Sep 2012 13:53:53 EDT

Engineers have created the first working quantum bit based on a single atom in silicon, opening the way to ultra-powerful quantum computers of the future. Scientists were able to both read and write information using the spin, or magnetic orientation, of an electron bound to a single phosphorus atom embedded in a silicon chip.

Research gives insight into graphene-metal junctions

Tue, 18 Sep 2012 15:41:41 EDT

Researchers have developed a better understanding of how these graphene-metal interfaces affect the movement of electrons through two-terminal junctions.

Driving an electron spin vortex 'skyrmion' with a microcurrent

Wed, 29 Aug 2012 11:22:22 EDT

Scientists have succeeded in forming a skyrmion crystal, in which electron spin is aligned in a vortex shape, in a microdevice using the helimagnet FeGe, and driving the skyrmion crystal with an ultra-low current density less than 1/100,000 that of the current necessary to drive magnetic domain walls in ferromagnets.

Graphene-based materials kill bacteria two ways

Wed, 29 Aug 2012 11:22:22 EDT

Graphene-based materials kill bacteria through one of two possible mechanisms. Researchers have now compared the antibacterial activity of graphite, graphite oxide, graphene oxide and reduced graphene oxide using the model bacterium Escherichia coli.

Magnetic vortex reveals key to spintronic speed limit

Tue, 28 Aug 2012 16:30:30 EDT

Spintronics use electron spin to write and read information. To mobilize this emerging technology, scientists must understand exactly how to manipulate spin as a carrier of computer code. Now, scientists have precisely measured a key parameter of electron interactions called non-adiabatic spin torque that is essential to the development of spintronic devices. This unprecedented precision guides the reading and writing of digital information and sets the spintronic speed limit.

Data storage: Ribbon readers

Mon, 20 Aug 2012 12:12:12 EDT

Transistors made from graphene nanoribbons make efficient magnetic field sensors, researchers have found.

A new route to dissipationless electronics

Sun, 19 Aug 2012 15:36:36 EDT

A team of researchers has demonstrated a new material that promises to eliminate loss in electrical power transmission. The surprise is that their methodology for solving this classic energy problem is based upon the first realization of a highly exotic type of magnetic semiconductor first theorized less than a decade ago - a magnetic topological insulator.

Scientists 'waltz' closer to using spintronics in computing

Mon, 13 Aug 2012 12:30:30 EDT

Aiming to use electron spins for storing, transporting and processing information, researchers have revealed the first-ever direct mapping of the formation of a persistent spin helix in a semiconductor.