Advanced materials for next-generation spintronics: The deterministic control of altermagnets
Project ID: 2531ad1569
(You will need this ID for your application)
Research Theme: Advanced Materials
UCL Lead department: Physics and Astronomy
Lead Supervisor: Roger Johnson
Project Summary:
Why this research is important: From electric motors to advanced data storage devices, ferromagnetic materials have transformed the modern world. Building on this progress today, ‘spintronics’ promise a new paradigm of beyond-CMOS digital technology, whereby information is processed using the spin of an electron, as opposed to its charge. However, the net magnetic moment of ferromagnets imposes fundamental limits that curb potential exploitation. These limits can be circumvented if antiferromagnets are used instead, but then the absence of a net moment hinders both the ability to deterministically control microscopic domains, and the generation of a spin polarised current needed for signal processing. The recent discovery of altermagnetism marks a transformative leap in the potential application of antiferromagnets, as they may host a remarkable anisotropic spin polarisation of conduction electrons. There now remains one key scientific challenge; to find novel methods of deterministic altermagnetic domain control.
Who you will work with: This PhD studentship will be supervised by Dr Roger Johnson and Prof. David Bowler. The experimental work will be performed in collaboration with the XMaS beamline at the large-scale European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) in Grenoble, France. The project will be further enhanced through collaborations with international and industrial project partners.
What you will be doing: The PhD student will test fundamental magnetostructural coupling schemes to establish novel methods of altermagnetic domain control. Resonant X-ray diffraction experiments will be performed on selected materials at XMaS, complemented by materials modelling calculations using density functional theory.
Who we are looking for: We are looking to recruit an outstanding student with a strong interest in condensed matter and computational physics. Ideally, the student will have completed Masters-level courses and/or a research project in related areas. There will be scope to tailor this project to the student’s interests.