High quality insulating spintronic films integrated directly on silicon

What is it about?

Garnets are a class of magnetic material that has been widely studied because of its easily tunable properties, robust stability, and possibility to be integrated into spintronics. Here we show that garnet can be grown directly on silicon, used in nearly every modern electronic device and computer, with performance similar to that of single-crystals of garnet on garnet substrates. This opens the door for potential integration of garnet materials as next generation computer memories.

Featured Image

Photo by Vincent Botta on Unsplash

Photo by Vincent Botta on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Insulating spintronics have the potential to greatly improve computer memories, through reduced energy consumption, higher speeds, and higher endurance. Here we show that it is possible to grow one type of these materials, garnets, directly on silicon, which makes them potentially compatible with existing electronic manufacturing processes.