In this atomic force microscopy topography image of a special mixed phase bismuth ferrite sample, red and green shaded areas indicate two sets of mixed phase regions oriented at 90 degrees to each other. Credit: Image from Ramesh group
Posted on 03/18/2011 6:30:00 PM PDT by decimon
(PhysOrg.com) -- Berkeley researchers find enhanced and controllable magnetization in unique bismuth ferrite films.
"The nation that controls magnetism will control the universe," famed fictional detective Dick Tracy predicted back in 1935. Probably an overstatement, but there's little doubt the nation that leads the development of advanced magnetoelectronic or "spintronic" devices is going to have a serious leg-up on its Information Age competition. A smaller, faster and cheaper way to store and transfer information is the spintronic grand prize and a key to winning this prize is understanding and controlling a multiferroic property known as "spontaneous magnetization."
Now, researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have been able to enhance spontaneous magnetization in special versions of the popular multiferroic material bismuth ferrite. What's more, they can turn this magnetization "on/off" through the application of an external electric field, a critical ability for the advancement of spintronic technology.
"Taking a novel approach, we've created a new magnetic state in bismuth ferrite along with the ability to electrically control this magnetism at room temperature," says Ramamoorthy Ramesh, a materials scientist with Berkeley Lab's Materials Sciences Division, who led this research. "An enhanced magnetization arises in the rhombohedral phases of our bismuth ferrite self-assembled nanostructures. This magnetization is strain-confined between the tetragonal phases of the material and can be erased by the application of an electric field. The magnetization is restored when the polarity of the electric field is reversed."
Ramesh, who also holds appointments with the University of California Berkeley's Department of Materials Science and Engineering and the Department of Physics, is the corresponding author of a paper in the journal Nature Communications titled "Electrically Controllable Spontaneous Magnetism in Nanoscale Mixed Phase Multiferroics."
(Excerpt) Read more at physorg.com ...
Via SunkenCiv.
bump
I was somehow drawn to this post...
I remember the old Dick Tracy funny papers. Diet Smith used to travel around in his magnetic powered space ship. I think that is where he found the “Moon Maid”.
But not quartered.
Will this help me attract a man?
Not yet...but I sense the danger. On an entirely different note, did you hear about the agnostic, dyslexic insomniac. The poor guy stayed up all night wondering if there really IS a dog.
Probably not. You are in the absolute worst locale to satisfy that desire. Good luck.
Wonder how this fits in with bismuth being the most strongly diamagnetic naturally occurring element.
Always been interested in diamagnetic properties of certain substances.
Yep. Your memory is good.
However it wasn't back in 1935 as per the article.
Diet Smith's "magnetic space ship" was first mentioned back in the late 50's - early 60's.
He "found" the moon maid in a deep canyon on the moon and brought her back to earth.
The comic strip was just "cashing in" on the "space craze" back then what with sputnik and American /Russian "space race" of the era.
LOL. I thought it was a hoot.
Almost every comic strip of that time period included something about the space craze. Even Beetle Baily.
Dang it, I wish you hadn’t said that. I’ve been carrying a torch for Moon Maid since my (sob) adolescence...
Actually, I found the moon maid rather cute too.....
Yes Sir.
I don’t see the immediate benefit here, perhaps scaled down size of the binary digit decreases initial energy required. If so, long term storage is still a problem. Not to mention production costs.
I always thought Miss Buxley was sort of hot. Poor Beetle Bailey never stood a chance with her tho.
Now Amos Halftrack must have kept her around for some reason.
Bismuth persistently shows up at UFO crash sites.
I don’t know if you recall, or not . . .
Bismuth frequently shows up at UFO craft sites.
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