Physicists have discovered that a quantum mechanical phenomenon previously understood to only occur at extremely low temperatures can happen at room temperature.
Even better, the currents they generated were 10 times stronger than before.
The breakthrough means that we may have taken a step closer to low-power, high-performance electronics at a time when demand for artificial intelligence (AI) is soaring.
The new study, published by researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and Sogang University in South Korea, has found a new way to generate spin currents at room temperature using a method called longitudinal spin pumping,
The team said the observation was "highly unexpected".
"Spin pumping is a method that generates spin currents through magnetisation dynamics. Previous studies have relied on classical magnetisation dynamics, which produce relatively small spin currents," Kyung-Jin Lee, a researcher at the Department of Physics at KAIST, told Euronews NEXT.
"In our research, we discovered that spin pumping currents generated from quantum magnetisation dynamics are an order of magnitude larger than those from classical magnetisation dynamics," Lee added.
Experts say this could mean we are a step closer to more efficient memory and computing devices that consume less power.
"A mechanism that can boost a spin current 10 times [more] than earlier… is very promising and exciting," Aamir Ali, a quantum technology research specialist at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, told Euronews Next.
Lee adds that with so many mobile devices today, energy efficiency is important, especially as the growing demand for AI requires more computing power.
What is spintronics and how can it help our lives?
Most electronics we use today rely on electronic circuits. In these small chips, electrons move to process and store information.
One downside of this mechanism is that energy is lost and generates heat while electrons move through a circuit.
Spintronics has gained in popularity as a potential solution.
Spintronics researchers around the world have been trying to generate enough currents using an electron’s spin rather than its charge as in traditional electronics.
"Spintronics also offers mechanisms that give much more sensitivity in detecting spin than traditional charge-based electronics," said Ali.
Ali said it means that hard disk drives can be read faster.
In 2007, Albert Fert and Peter Grünberg were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for their discovery of Giant Magnetoresistance (GMR), a spintronics phenomenon that enabled ultra-sensitive magnetic read heads in hard disk drives.
Spintronics devices are already being developed and used at room temperature by semiconductor manufacturers around the world, but they rely on relatively weaker spin-based effects.
Experts say generating spin currents is challenging.
The research team believes their new findings could directly impact a type of memory called Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory (MRAM), which is a spintronics component with a wide range of applications from software and medical devices to aerospace.
"MRAM devices rely on spin currents to record data, and our findings – demonstrating that quantum magnetisation dynamics at room temperature can generate significantly larger spin currents – could lead to lower power consumption in MRAM. This advancement may further accelerate MRAM adoption by enhancing its energy efficiency and scalability," said Lee.
Semiconductor giants like Samsung are exploring whether MRAM could become the next-generation memory for AI computing.
Experimental-theoretical approach
Researchers say the combined experimental-theoretical approach was crucial in establishing the findings, as quantum science involves particles that can’t be seen by humans.
First, a team at Sogang University made a new material made of iron rhodium.
After, a team at KAIST conducted a "challenging" experiment to detect spin pumping currents on the nanosecond timescale, which required advanced ultrafast measurement techniques, according to the research team.
Then a theory group analysed the experimental data.
Researchers say they now aim to turn these findings into real-world designs that could change the way our electronics work.
"Looking ahead, we plan to explore new materials and mechanisms to further enhance spin current generation," Lee said.
"Additionally, we aim to develop novel spintronic device architectures that leverage quantum effects for ultra-low-power and high-performance memory and logic applications".
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