Researchers shed new light on interfacial ferromagnetism in superlattices of alternating magnetic layers. By advancing our understanding of atomic-level interactions at magnetic interfaces, this work expands the scope of traditional interface studies and lays the groundwork for future innovations in magnetic storage and spintronics. Read more »
ALS Work Using XMCD
Magnetization Switching in Highly Magnetostrictive Microstructures
Researchers learned how the size, shape, and orientation of microstructures affect how they switch magnetization directions in response to an applied voltage. The work advances our understanding of strain-responsive composite materials for use in energy-efficient electronic applications such as memory devices, sensors, and actuators. Read more »
Capturing the Spin Dynamics of a Complex Magnetic Material
Magnetic iron oxides (ferrites) are complex materials with broad electronic applications that are often driven by microwaves. Here, researchers have precisely measured the spin behavior of several distinct cations in a ferrite material under an applied microwave field, validating a longstanding assumption about magnetic oxide dynamics. Read more »
Spiraling Beams Differentiate Antiferromagnetic States
Using spiraling x-ray beams, researchers differentiated between energetically equivalent (“degenerate”) states in an antiferromagnetic lattice. The work shows the potential of these beams to probe properties that would otherwise be inaccessible, to better understand phenomena of fundamental interest and for applications such as spintronics. Read more »
Disorder Drives Long-Range Order in “Tetris Ice” Nanomagnet Arrays
Long-range ordering is typically associated with a decrease in disorder, or entropy. Yet, it can also be driven by increasing entropy in certain special cases. In a recent DOE-funded study, researchers demonstrated that certain artificial spin-ice arrays—nanomagnets lithographically patterned to form Tetris-like shapes—can produce such entropy-driven order. Read more »
Exploring Critical Synthetic Parameters for Nanoscale ε-Fe2O3 and Their Influence on Magnetic Behaviors
An intermediate polymorph of iron oxide, ε-Fe2O3, has attracted significant attention for potential applications in high-frequency mm-wave absorption and high-density magnetic recording. However, fabrication is still a challenge. Here, we identified critical reaction parameters to improve the phase purity and tested their effects. Read more »
A Two-Dimensional Room-Temperature Magnet
Researchers have made the world’s thinnest (one atom thick) magnet that’s chemically stable under ambient conditions. The two-dimensional material, magnetically characterized at the ALS, could enable big advances in next-generation memory devices, computing, spintronics, and quantum physics. Read more »
Main Attraction: Scientists Create World’s Thinnest Magnet
A one-atom-thin 2D magnet that operates at room temperature could lead to new applications in computing and electronics—such as high-density, compact spintronic memory devices—and new tools for the study of quantum physics. X-ray experiments at the ALS characterized the material’s magnetic parameters under high temperature. Read more »
Single-Domain Multiferroic Array-Addressable Terfenol-D (SMArT) Micromagnets for Programmable Single-Cell Capture and Release
Researchers develop programmable multiferroic micromotors that enable single-cell manipulation based on time-dependent functions of individual cells, such as cell secretion. Smart programmable multiferroic materials lay the groundwork for large-scale automated single-cell sorting and enable a broad spectrum of biotechnology applications. Read more »
Programmable Micromagnets for Single-Cell Sorting
Researchers demonstrated that electrically induced mechanical strain can control the magnetic state of tiny magnets used to sort biological cells. The work lays the foundation for a programmable, single-cell sorting platform to support a wide variety of biotechnology applications, including personalized cancer treatments. Read more »