Communications of the ACM
Breakthrough For Information Technology Using Heusler Materials
Researchers have directly observed 100% spin polarization of a Heusler compound for the first time.
Credit: Martin Jourdan
Researchers at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) have, for the first time, directly observed the 100% spin polarization of a Heusler compound, a breakthrough that could lead to the future development of high-performance spintronic devices using Heusler materials.
"This class of materials has long been under investigation and there is substantial theoretical evidence for the required electronic properties of Heusler compounds but no single experiment has previously been able to confirm 100% spin polarization at room temperature," says JGU researcher Martin Jourdan.
The experiments were successful because of the preparation of samples with extreme precision. "We were able to show that perfectly prepared materials actually have the properties that have been theoretically predicted," Jourdan says.
Meanwhile, Ludwig-Maximilians University researcher Jan Minar notes "such a combination of electronic structure and theoretical photoemission calculations made direct comparison with the corresponding experimental data possible, which in turn was essential to interpreting the 100% spin polarization that was measured."
From Gutenberg University Mainz
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Abstracts Copyright © 2014 Information Inc., Bethesda, Maryland, USA
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