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Scientists achieve breakthrough in harnessing heat to control magnetism in 2D materials

Pioneering new research could help unlock exciting new potential to create ultrafast, laser-driven storage devices. The study, led by experts from the University of Exeter, could revolutionize the field of data storage through the development of laser-driven magnetic domain memories.

The new research is based on creating a pivotal new method for using heat to manipulate magnetism with unprecedented precision in two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals materials. It is in the journal Nature Communications.

Typically, heat is an unwanted byproduct of power consumption in electronic devices, especially in semiconductors. As devices become smaller and more compact, managing heat has become one of the major challenges in modern electronics.

However, this new research turns this challenge into an opportunity. The team's innovative technique leverages the unique properties of 2D materials, where the weak interlayer bonds allow for exceptionally low thermal conductivity and highly anisotropic heat dissipation.

The research, led by Dr. Maciej DÄ…browski at the University of Exeter, introduces a novel approach to controlling heat flow and magnetic properties on timescales as short as hundreds of femtoseconds.

By using carefully timed laser pulses of specific wavelengths to heat the material, followed by the use of pulses at another wavelength to probe the resulting changes, the team achieved real-time monitoring of temperature and magnetization dynamics in atomically thin 2D materials.

This allowed for sub-picosecond temporal resolution and sub-micron spatial resolution, setting a new benchmark for precision in this field.

A key breakthrough of the research was the team's ability to manipulate the thickness of the magnetic layers, significantly enhancing the rate at which heat dissipates and accelerating the magnetization recovery process.

These advancements lay the foundation for the development of ultrafast data recording devices that operate exclusively with laser pulses, entirely eliminating the need for external magnetic fields.

The potential applications of this breakthrough are vast. The ability to control magnetism with laser pulses, without the need for external magnetic fields, could enable the creation of highly efficient, non-volatile memory devices that are faster, smaller, and more reliable than anything currently available.

Dr. DÄ…browski said, "This research opens up exciting possibilities for thermal engineering of future devices on the ultrafast timescale. Robust magnetic domain memory effect observed in our results has so far been unreachable in other materials and reveals new applications of 2D van der Waals magnets in ultrafast magnetic recording and quantum technologies based on the spin of the electron."