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Visualization of atomic-scale magnetism achieved with new imaging method

An international research team led by Forschungszentrum Jülich has succeeded in visualizing magnetism inside solids with unprecedented precision. Using a newly developed method, the scientists were able to image the finest building blocks of magnetism directly at the atomic level. They have their findings in the journal Nature Materials.

Magnetism is an integral part of our everyday lives—it is found in electric motors, loudspeakers, and the storage media of modern computers. It is generated by the movement and spin of electrons. Previous techniques could only measure these properties to a limited extent and often only on the surface of materials. The team led by Dr. Hasan Ali and Prof. Rafal E. Dunin-Borkowski has now developed a new method using a state-of-the-art electron microscope to measure magnetic properties at a previously unattainable resolution.

"Our technique allows us to visualize the magnetic properties within a material with atomic precision," explains Dr. Hasan Ali, first author of the study. "This enables us to observe how the movement and spin of electrons behave in the crystal lattice."

Surprising insights into iron

The researchers first examined an iron crystal—one of the best-known magnetic materials. They made a surprising discovery: even within a single crystal, the ratio of orbital and spin-related magnetic moments varies significantly from place to place. These subtle differences have a major influence on magnetic properties and were previously impossible to measure.

"This is a major advance in our understanding of magnetism," says Prof. Dunin-Borkowski, director at Forschungszentrum Jülich. "The new method will help us to design materials specifically so that they become even more efficient and powerful in the future."

The results are not only significant for basic research. They also open up new opportunities for the development of innovative technologies. In the future, the new method could help develop energy-saving storage solutions or advance the still young field of spintronics, which uses the spin of electrons for information processing.