https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Skyrmions—essentially magnetic vortices—represent a promising approach in spintronics; in the future, they could serve as components in storage media or computers, potentially complementing established CMOS technologies. Researchers at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) have now visualized the interaction of antiferromagnetic skyrmions for the first time and shown that antiferromagnetic skyrmions move reproducibly along straight trajectories aligned with the driving electric current. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-real-reveal-antiferromagnetic-skyrmions-line.html Condensed Matter Mon, 10 Aug 2026 12:00:03 EDT news705581582 Magnetic storage technologies, which store information in the direction of magnetization, play an essential role in modern data storage. Hard disk drives (HDDs) are widely used for long-term storage, while nonvolatile magnetic random-access memory (MRAM) is emerging as a promising alternative to flash memory. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-50c-ultrathin-magnetic-stays-flat.html Nanomaterials Fri, 07 Aug 2026 12:40:07 EDT news705316862 Chiral phonons are groups of atoms that move in a circular direction when excited by an energy source, such as heat. As the phonons move through a material, they propagate that circular motion, or angular momentum, through the material. The angular momentum serves as the source of spin, and the chirality dictates the direction of the spin, enabling spin control in spintronics. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-electric-field-reverses-phonon-chirality.html Condensed Matter Wed, 05 Aug 2026 15:00:06 EDT news705151382 Ruthenium dioxide (RuO2) is a metal oxide that commonly serves as an important metallic conductor, quantum material and industrial electrocatalyst. While there have been debates surrounding the magnetic properties of RuO2, it is generally thought to be nonmagnetic in its bulk form. But now, a new study, published in Science Advances, has found that very thin layers of RuO2 can become magnetic when its lattice is placed under strain. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-unusual-metal-oxide-magnetism-lattice.html Condensed Matter Sat, 01 Aug 2026 14:40:01 EDT news704715788 Quantum fluctuations influence direction-dependent electrical transport in chiral magnets, researchers from Science Tokyo report. In chiral magnetic systems, electric current flows differently depending on its direction, but the role of quantum effects in this behavior has remained unclear. Through theoretical analysis, the researchers showed that chiral magnetic systems exhibit logarithmic temperature dependence at low temperatures, offering new insights into electron transport in magnetic materials. These findings are expected to play a crucial role in spintronics. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-quantum-effects-electrical-chiral-magnets.html Condensed Matter Thu, 30 Jul 2026 17:30:01 EDT news704648701 Spin waves (SWs), or magnons, are collective excitations of magnetization in magnetic materials arising from electron spins. They have attracted considerable attention as information carriers and have shown promise in logic circuits, memory devices and physical neural networks. Among the emerging platforms for manipulating SWs are magnonic crystals (MCs), engineered magnetic materials with periodic structures designed to control magnon propagation. These periodic structures give rise to magnonic band structures and mode profiles, much like semiconductor crystals control electron transport. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-inverse-2d-magnonic-crystals-widen.html Nanophysics Tue, 28 Jul 2026 17:00:07 EDT news704470382 A new study published in Nature Physics reports the first direct experimental evidence of a Floquet topological state, a novel light-induced phase of matter that, until now, has existed only on paper and in simulations. Topological insulators can conduct electricity along their surface while remaining insulating throughout their bulk. Physicists have spent years developing Floquet engineering, a technique that uses intense, rapidly oscillating light fields to temporarily reshape a material's electronic structure. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-physicists-capture-evidence-floquet-topological.html Condensed Matter Mon, 27 Jul 2026 08:00:01 EDT news704113591 One of Europe's highest distinctions in condensed matter physics has been awarded for a discovery that is reshaping our understanding of magnetism: The 2026 Europhysics Prize of the European Physical Society (EPS) Condensed Matter Division goes to Professor Jairo Sinova of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU), Dr. Libor Šmejkal and Professor Tomas Jungwirth for their discovery of altermagnetism—a previously unknown fundamental class of magnetism. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-prize-honors-discovery-altermagnetism-fundamental.html Condensed Matter Fri, 24 Jul 2026 23:00:01 EDT news704119959 In most everyday materials, such as copper, silver and silicon, the behavior of electrons is relatively predictable. In quantum materials, however, electrons can interact in complex ways, giving rise to collective electronic states with remarkable properties. Understanding how these states emerge—and, ultimately, how to control them—is one of the central challenges in quantum materials research. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-striped-checkered-magnetic-field-electronic.html Condensed Matter Thu, 23 Jul 2026 05:00:10 EDT news703933441 Artificial intelligence faces an energy crisis stemming from a physical traffic jam inside modern computer chips. Processors must continually shuffle data, such as the billions of parameters in complex models, between separate computing and memory nodes. This traffic jam, known as the "von Neumann bottleneck," hinders the speed and energy efficiency of advanced processors. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-quantum-microscope-illuminates-transistor.html Condensed Matter Tue, 21 Jul 2026 16:20:11 EDT news703858561 Quantum technologies promise revolutionary advances in computing, sensing and information processing. However, controlling individual quantum bits (qubits) at the atomic scale remains a major challenge because conventional approaches rely on magnetic fields, which are difficult to confine to a single molecule. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-scientists-electrical-molecule-quantum-states.html Quantum Physics Thu, 16 Jul 2026 09:30:03 EDT news703407599 The properties of ultrathin magnets can be specifically altered by a slight twist between two atomic monolayers. This is the conclusion reached by an international research team led by TU Darmstadt in a study published in Nature Communications. The findings open new prospects for future memory devices. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-ultrathin-magnet-retains-magnetization-field.html Condensed Matter Tue, 14 Jul 2026 09:20:01 EDT news703232989 Materials with magnetic nanostructures have a wide range of potential applications. One area is so-called spintronics, with devices that encode information in magnetic domains. These magnetic bits can be written, read and erased in a more energy-efficient way than bits in current semiconductor devices. Spin textures and magnetic domains in such materials can be investigated using nanoscale magnetic imaging techniques. For example, photoemission electron microscopy (PEEM), coupled with a magnetically sensitive detection mechanism. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-tiny-magnetic-image-spintronic-materials.html Nanophysics Sun, 12 Jul 2026 17:00:03 EDT news702563676 Advanced magnetic memory and spintronic devices rely on the ability to control magnetic states using electricity. Today, such technologies work by manipulating relatively simple magnetic structures found in ferromagnets, where all the magnetic moments point the same way. However, researchers are becoming increasingly interested in controlling more complex magnetic systems because these could offer higher information density and improved efficiency. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-route-electrically-helimagnetic.html General Physics Thu, 09 Jul 2026 07:48:24 EDT news702802030 Researchers from The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have developed the first magnetic multipole-based micromagnetic model for antiferromagnets. Published in Applied Physics Reviews, their generalized framework provides a theoretical and computational foundation for designing future spintronic devices made with antiferromagnetic materials. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-magnetic-octupole-captures-domain-wall.html Condensed Matter Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:20:09 EDT news702658045 Magnetic storage devices, like a computer's hard disk drive, utilize magnets to represent binary data. However, as these devices are downsized, stray magnetic fields generated by individual magnetic components can interact with neighboring elements to cause operational malfunctions, limiting how much data we can densely pack into memory devices. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-magnetic-chirality-memory.html Condensed Matter Sun, 05 Jul 2026 06:40:02 EDT news702292237 Researchers at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) are the first to directly utilize orbital currents without the need for conversion of the orbital current into a spin current. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-orbitronics-key-hurdle-orbital-currents.html Condensed Matter Thu, 02 Jul 2026 17:10:01 EDT news702229681 Researchers at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) have developed a new way to use molecules as tiny data storage devices with a new manganese-based material. Until now, this was possible only with iron-containing molecular materials, which require very low temperatures—ranging from 100 to a maximum of 130 Kelvin (minus 173 to minus 143°C)—making their application significantly more difficult. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-states-manganese-ions-path-molecular.html Analytical Chemistry Mon, 29 Jun 2026 13:20:08 EDT news701953803 Color-changing mood rings, forehead fever strips and car-shade indicators all change hues as they warm and cool, thanks to a phenomenon called thermochromism. On a smaller scale, thermochromism is used in nanotechnologies like sensors, electronics and computing. These applications require smart materials that can be patterned into designs without losing structural integrity, which can be difficult. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-uv-patterns-thermochromic-crystals.html Analytical Chemistry Mon, 29 Jun 2026 10:20:03 EDT news701945222 A research team has developed a new strategy to simultaneously control the electronic and magnetic properties of oxide thin films through a process known as exsolution. The team was led by Professor Hyeon Han and Professor Donghwa Lee from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), together with Professor Sang Ho Oh's group at Korea Institute of Energy Technology (KENTECH). The findings are published in the journal Advanced Materials. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-nanoparticle-exsolution-route-functional-oxide.html Nanophysics Thu, 25 Jun 2026 21:00:01 EDT news701624281 In an international experiment, researchers observed Jahn–Teller polarons—quasiparticles that could play an important role in future ultrafast spintronic devices. These polarons emerged within the crystal lattice of cobalt oxide that had been activated by carefully tailored laser pulses. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-laser-pulses-capture-unexplored-polaronic.html Condensed Matter Thu, 25 Jun 2026 17:40:02 EDT news701617923 Chiral 2D metal halide perovskites (MHPs) are among the most promising materials for future technologies that exploit the spin of electrons in spin-based optoelectronics, or spintronics, but getting them to perform consistently has proven difficult. Now scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have developed a data-driven approach that identifies and models key synthesis parameters to optimize their performance. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-scientists-roadmap-boost-gen-spintronics.html Condensed Matter Thu, 25 Jun 2026 17:30:01 EDT news701626681 Multiferroics are materials that exhibit more than one prominent "ferroic" property, such as ferromagnetism and ferroelectricity. One of their most advantageous features is that they allow engineers to control their magnetic states with electric fields or vice versa, due to an effect known as magnetoelectric coupling. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-interlayer-doping-room-temperature-multiferroics.html Condensed Matter Wed, 24 Jun 2026 08:40:01 EDT news701346383 Researchers at the National Graphene Institute, in collaboration with the National University of Singapore, have shown that the magnetic behavior of electrons in graphene can be precisely controlled using electricity, revealing unusually large spin signals in a carefully engineered graphene system. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-electrically-tunable-polarization-graphene-path.html Condensed Matter Thu, 18 Jun 2026 18:00:03 EDT news701014116 Scientists can learn a lot about a quantum material by watching how it responds to light. In magnetic semiconductors, one especially useful messenger is the exciton: a pairing of a negatively charged electron and the positively charged "hole" it leaves behind. Until now, excitons in magnetic materials have mostly been used as reporters. They could reveal how spins were arranged or how magnetic waves moved through a material. But Cornell researchers have shown that excitons can do more than observe magnetism. They can actively steer it. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-magnet-excitons-knob-magnetic.html Condensed Matter Thu, 18 Jun 2026 12:00:04 EDT news700995121 A newly developed method allows researchers to dynamically switch chirality—a particular lack of mirror symmetry—to generate spin currents in semiconductors, researchers from Science Tokyo report. Their approach relies on the reversible insertion and removal of small chiral molecules from the interlayer gaps of a layered, nonchiral semiconductor material using electrochemistry. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-reversible-chirality-mos-generates-currents.html Condensed Matter Wed, 17 Jun 2026 12:40:05 EDT news700909861 An international collaborative research group has developed a new computational method to visualize the electronic states of aperiodic nanomaterials as band structures through first-principles calculations on finite-sized giant molecule models. The approach reformulates band unfolding for giant molecule models and works even when translational symmetry is imperfect or the material is curved. The team includes Assistant Professor Naoya Yamaguchi and Professor Fumiyuki Ishii of the Nanomaterials Research Institute at Kanazawa University, Associate Professor Chi-Cheng Lee of Tamkang University in Taiwan, and Professor Taisuke Ozaki of the University of Tokyo. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-visualizing-band-nanostructures-theory-imperfect.html Nanomaterials Wed, 10 Jun 2026 18:00:04 EDT news700318545 The planar Hall effect is a tabletop diagnostic tool for special quantum properties useful in basic research and technological applications. Or so it was thought, because careful calculation by Kobe University researchers clarifies the conditions under which this effect may also appear in classical materials. This makes the diagnostic more meaningful and enables more purposeful design. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-math-discriminates-exotic-classical-materials.html Condensed Matter Mon, 01 Jun 2026 11:00:07 EDT news699263693 An extremely fast microscopy method to research the interaction of light and matter makes it possible to study optical processes on very short timescales. To this end, a German–Italian research team is combining holographic imaging with ultrafast spectroscopy in an innovative way. In this manner, even extremely short-lived electronic and magnetic phenomena—which play a major role in the development and application of novel energy materials—can be observed. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-ultrafast-holographic-imaging-reveals-electron.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 28 May 2026 19:10:02 EDT news699206941 Flashes of femtosecond laser light, lasting just a few trillionths of a second, have made it possible to observe new magnetic structures for the first time. By using light as a remote control, researchers were able to switch magnetism into previously unseen three-dimensional states at the nanoscale. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-threedimensional-magnetic-laser.html Condensed Matter Mon, 25 May 2026 17:00:01 EDT news698942462