Spintronics

The holy grail in spintronics is to address spin with something other than magnets and now University of Ohio researchers provided a theoretical modeling for a recent experiment that was the first to successfully control an electron’s spin using purely electrical fields. The team collaborated with a research group at the University of Cincinnati, led by Philippe Debray and Marc Cahay. Debray conceived and designed the experiments. The Ohio University researchers’ calculations explained the behavior of the electrons in Debray’s experimental conditions and predicted how strong the electric field’s control over the spin would be. Their research also revealed one of the key conditions ... Read Full Story

Researchers from the University of Cincinnati has developed a novel way to control the spin of electrons using pure electric means. Before the researchers made their breakthrough, the only way to control the spin of electrons was by using local ferromagnets in device architectures. The scientists say that this technique results in design complexities when the demands for electronics require smaller and smaller transistors. The team used a device called a quantum point contact. Philippe Debray, research professor in the Department of Physics in the McMicken College of Arts & Sciences said "We used a quantum point contact — a short quantum wire — ... Read Full Story

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has granted $450,000 to a pair of Florida State University scientists to perform advanced measurements on semiconductors developed by colleagues in China. Their goal is to determine whether electron spin can be harnessed in such a way that future computers and other high-tech electronic devices would require far less power to run. Via Medical News Today Read Full Story

Researchers at North Carolina State University have received a three-year, $1.2 million grant from the National Science Foundation’s Center for Chemical Innovation (NSF-CCI) to pursue research in the emerging field of molecular spintronics. The grant will fund a center for molecular spintronics at NC State and support a research coalition between scientists at NC State and UNC-Chapel Hill with the aim of using this technology to develop smaller, faster, more energy-efficient electronic devices with increased storage capability. Via NanoWerk Read Full Story

A must-have ten-volume successor to the critically acclaimed Nanotechnologies for the Life Sciences series, Magnetic Nanomaterials is as a cross-disciplinary reference that provides an excellent, in-depth overview of all nanomaterial types and their uses in the life sciences. Each volume is dedicated to a specific material class and covers fundamentals, synthesis strategies, structure-property relationships, material behavior fine-tuning, biological effects, and applications in the life sciences. This landmark publication provides materials scientists, chemists, biologists, molecular biologists, clinical physicists, physiological chemists, medicinal chemists, and toxicologists with essential awareness of life science and nanomaterials abilities. Read Full Story