Memories in a spin

             Many electronic devices use magnetism to store information, but now researchers at the National Institute for Materials Science, RIKEN and The University of Tokyo have paved the way for a new magnetic  approach that uses less power.

        Magnetism is generated by the properties of electrons. These spin on an axis like the Earth, but the direction in which they spin is changeable; in a magnetic material, the spins of most electrons are aligned with each  other. In one particular type of magnetism, electron spins align in a vortex pattern, a state known as a skyrmion. It’s this state that  could allow for more efficient digital storage.

        Magnetic  memories store information by switching the direction of electron spin – these switches correspond to the ones and zeros of digital information. Making these switches requires a relatively large amount of electricity, and if this could be reduced, memory devices would consume less power.

        Researchers had previously shown that  they could create a stable skyrmion in an iron- germanium alloy at near-room temperature – this is most often only possible at extremely low temperatures. Now, they have shown that  they can control this skyrmion using an electrical current that’s 100,000th of that  needed with a conventional magnet. This is the first step towards developing new memory devices that  use skyrmions to store information and that  consume very little  power.

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