Researchers discover unconventional magnetism at the surface of Sr2RuO4
The attractive properties of Sr2RuO4, like its ability to carry lossless electrical currents and magnetic information simultaneously, make it a material with great potential for the development of future technologies like superconducting spintronics and quantum electronics. An international research team, led by scientists at the University of Konstanz, was recently able to answer one of the most interesting open questions on Sr2RuO4: why does the superconducting state of this material exhibit some features that are typically found in materials known as ferromagnets, which are considered being antagonists to superconductors?
Spin polarized muon particles (red spheres with arrows) probing a new form of magnetism in the perovskite superconductor Sr2RuO4. Credit: Konstanz University
The team has found that the material hosts a new form of magnetism, which can coexist with superconductivity and exists independently of superconductivity as well.