May 2025

Researchers from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in Israel, Tiangong University in China, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences have reported an innovative method that advances the understanding of spin dynamics in textured magnets and could facilitate the development of spintronic technologies based on frustrated magnetic systems.

Magnetic skyrmions excited by currents of spin polarized electrons (Illustration) 

The team's approach presents a new way to manipulate and track the motion of tiny magnetic structures known as skyrmions, that has the potential to enable more efficient memory and sensing devices in future electronics.

Here are some recent and popular spintronics industry and research news that you may find of interest:

• Researchers show that light can interact with single-atom layers
• New antiferromagnetic spintronics project receives funding of nearly $4 million
• TDK announces the world's first "Spin Photo Detector" with 10X data transmission speeds
• Spin-based memory could brings brain-like computing closer to reality
• Researchers report "somersaulting spin qubits"
• Researchers develop non-thermal method to alter magnetization using XUV radiation
• Researchers tackle key obstacles to bringing 2D magnetic materials into practical use
• New EU-funded project applies spintronics to the field of artificial intelligence
• Intel unveils a highly promising MESO spintronics device architecture
• Researchers report a new type of magnetism called altermagnetism
• Researchers develop spin-selective memtransistors with magnetized graphene
• Researchers use perovskite materials and light to control electron spins

According to scientists from Japan's Kobe University and University of Electro-Communications, there has long been a debate on whether bismuth is part of a class of materials highly suitable for quantum computing and spintronics. The research team has now revealed that the true nature of bismuth was masked by its surface, and in doing so uncovered a new phenomenon relevant to all such materials.

There is a class of materials that are insulators in their bulk, but robustly conductive at their surface. As this conductivity does not suffer from defects or impurities, such “topological materials,” as they are called, are expected to be highly suitable for use in quantum computers, spintronics and other advanced electronic applications. However, whether bismuth is a topological material or not has been under scientific debate for the past almost 20 years, with many calculations showing that it shouldn’t be, but certain measurements indicating differently. Kobe University quantum solid state physicist Fuseya Yuki says: “I have been fascinated by bismuth and have been conducting research with the desire to know everything there is to know about the element. As a bismuth lover, I could not overlook such a situation and delved into the debate, hoping to solve the mystery.”

Researchers at National Taiwan University have developed a new type of spintronic device that mimics how synapses work in the brain—offering a path to more energy-efficient and accurate artificial intelligence systems.

In their recent study, the team introduced three novel memory device designs, all controlled purely by electric current and without any need for an external magnetic field. Among the devices, the one based on “tilted anisotropy” stood out. This optimized structure was able to achieve 11 stable memory states with highly consistent switching behavior.

An international team of researchers has succeeded for the first time to elucidate how ultrafast spin-polarized current pulses can be characterized by measuring the ultrafast demagnetization in a magnetic layer system within the first hundreds of femtoseconds.

The scheme shows (from left to right): Hot electrons generated by a laser in platinum (light blue), the copper (yellow) is used to block the laser pulse so that only the hot electrons propagate and transport a spin current through the magnetic spin valve structure of cobalt platinum (blue-brown) and iron gadolinium (green). Image credit: HZB

The findings could be useful for the development of spintronic devices that enable faster and more energy-efficient information processing and storage. The collaboration involved teams from the University of Strasbourg, HZB, Uppsala University and several other universities.