For the first time, scientists have magnetized a non-magnetic material at room temperature, creating a quantum property that they say could pave the way for ultra-fast computing.
The ‘switchable’ magnetic field could one day be used to store and transmit information. This was something that was previously only possible at ultra-cold temperatures.
The results pave the way for “ultrafast magnetic switches that can be used for faster information transfer and significantly better data storage, and for computers that are significantly faster and more energy efficient,” said the study’s lead author. Alexander Balatskyprofessor of physics at the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics (NORDITA), said in a rack.
Scientists have long wanted to make use of the strange laws of quantum mechanics to improve computer systems, for example in quantum computers. But quantum states are delicate and can easily fall apart, or “decohere,” thanks to noise such as thermal vibrations or the random shaking of atoms.
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To get around this, researchers who want to create quantum behavior typically cool their materials to near-zero temperatures absolute zero. But that makes such systems difficult to maintain and operate.
In 2017, Balatsky and colleagues developed a theoretical approach to generate a quantum state, called ‘dynamic multiferroicity’, in which electrical polarization induced magnetism in a non-magnetic material. In this process, titanium atoms in a material are stirred in such a way that they generate a magnetic field.
In the new study, published April 10 in the journal NatureBalatasky’s team demonstrated the theory in titanium atoms surrounded by strontium titanate – an oxide made from titanium and strontium. The team sent out laser pulses that generated circular polarization photonsor light particles, in a narrow wavelength band.
The researchers fired the infrared laser with a wavelength of 1300 nanometers at the material in femtosecond (one quadrillionth of a second) bursts of 800 microjoules; By comparison, lasers used in hair removal are up to 40 joules – or 40,000,000 microjoules. They focused the pulses on the material using three parabolic mirrors, creating a circular beam with a diameter of about 0.5 millimeters.
These pulses induced circular motions in the atoms in the material. When left-circularly polarized, the north pole of the magnetization points up, but when right-circularly polarized, the north pole points down, creating magnetic fields that are as strong as a refrigerator magnet and can be turned on and off. The magnetic field only existed while the atoms were moving.
The researchers anticipate that this breakthrough will lead to ultra-fast magnetic switches that can operate at room temperature – using lasers to control a material’s lattice vibrations. This system could form the basis for transistors in smaller and faster computer systems that no longer require cold temperatures to operate.
This isn’t the first time scientists have used light to harness the power of magnetism for computers. In January, a separate study used the magnetic component of light to manipulate the magnetism of a solid material, which could lead to ultra-fast magnetic computer memory components in the future.